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FUNDAMENTALS OF SUCCESS 









Fundamentals of 
Success 

OR 

Making the Most of Life 

By H. A. BOAZ 

One of the Bishops of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church , South 



Nashville, Tenn. 
COKESBURY PRESS 
192-3 





Copyright, 1923 

BY 

Lamar & Barton 



OCT 20 ’23 


©C1A760447 


-HO | 



a a Odh RtiS 



TO MY WIFE 

WHO, BY HER UNSELFISH DEVOTION, LOYAL SUPPORT, 
AND WISE COUNSEL, HAS BEEN MY CONSTANT 
JOY AND INSPIRATION, THIS VOL¬ 
UME IS AFFECTIONATELY 
DEDICATED 
















PREFACE 


When but a barefoot country boy wearing 
homemade pants and a “hickory” waist I 
attended a small rural school taught by a 
little crippled woman, Miss Tabby Phillips. 
The schoolhouse stood on the side of a hill 
not far from a beautiful stream and a lovely 
grove. It was a small one-room shanty with 
bare walls and puncheon seats. The house 
was unattractive, the furniture homemade, 
but the teacher was a rare and radiant spirit. 
She wielded a powerful influence over her 
pupils. Along with the others I worshiped 
at her shrine. One beautiful day, never to 
be forgotten, she said to me: “Hiram, if you 
will be a good boy and study hard, some day 
you can be a member of the United States 
Congress.” How my bosom swelled with 
boyish pride! With bounding steps and 
joyous heart I hastened home to tell my 
mother what “Miss Tabby” had said. With 
tender love and solicitude she confirmed my 
teacher’s prediction; then I was sure that I 
could grow to be a man of distinction if I 
would only try. 


(?) 


8 


Fundamentals of Success 


This seed thought planted by my dis¬ 
cerning teacher and cultivated by my faith¬ 
ful mother grew into a great purpose to live 
the best and noblest life possible for me. 
Many times my teacher whispered in my 
glad ear something of her hope to see me 
some day a “great man,” and many times 
my mother urged me to the faithful discharge 
of every duty in order to realize my ambi¬ 
tion. Continually the great purpose glowed 
and burned in my bosom until it became a 
consuming passion. I thought of it by day; 
I dreamed of it by night. I was to be a 
“great man” some day and achieve honor 
for myself and family. It was a constant in¬ 
spiration to hard study and the faithful 
performance of every duty. I knew that a 
statesman ought to be a scholar and an 
honorable man. I was trying in my boyish 
way to measure up to the standard of a 
statesman in embryo. They had set the 
ambition in my heart to do the best I could 
to live a noble life and be of real value to the 
world. 

As adolescence passed and my environ¬ 
ment changed, I came to believe that my 
best field for service was not in the political 


Preface 


9 


arena but in the ranks of the itinerant Meth¬ 
odist ministry. But the purpose to live the 
noblest life possible, fixed as a boy, has 
grown with the passing years and has become 
a strong sustaining force. Though falling 
far short of my own ideals, I have striven 
with strong endeavor to make the best pos¬ 
sible use of my limited ability and the op¬ 
portunities in reach. 

Because of this experience in my early life 
I have gladly devoted most of my efforts 
thus far to work among the young people, 
hoping to inspire in their hearts some 
laudable ambitions such as were inspired at 
an early date in mine. Undue ambitions I 
would not foster; for when not satisfied, they 
can eat out all joy and fill life with bitter 
disappointment. But a noble desire to 
render the best service possible can but 
bring a blessing wherever it is found. 

It is my earnest desire to “light up the 
spirit” within youthful readers and show 
them the “more excellent way.” Mr. 
Gladstone once said: “In some effectual 
degree there is in every boy the material of 
good work in the world.” There are now 
lying dormant in thousands of young men 


10 


Fundamentals of Success 


and women splendid possibilities which, if 
awakened, would bring beneficial results. 
Would that I could stir the souls and fire the 
hearts of all who read these words and make 
them fully realize that in the world there are 
to-day an excellent field for service, a royal 
order of living, and honor and plenty for all 
who are willing to put forth the necessary 
effort! To help young men and women to 
the highest ideals, to awaken dormant hopes, 
to set the noblest standards, to encourage the 
strongest efforts, and to fire a holy passion 
for service to God and man is the earnest 
desire of the writer of this modest little 
volume. 


CONTENTS 


Page 

I. Our Wonderful Day . 13 

II. Golden Opportunities. 31 

III. The Demand for Men. 48 

IV. The Value of a Man. 63 

V. Heredity. 79 

VI. Environment. 92 

VII. The Will . 107 

VIII. Divine Grace. 120 

IX. The Ultimate Aim. 125 

X. How to Fail. 138 

XI. The Meaning of Success. 156 

XII. Conditions of Success. 166 

XIII. More Conditions of Success. 184 

XIV. Courage and Faith Necessary. 200 


(ID 






















Fundamentals of Success 


i 

OUR WONDERFUL DAY 

T WO million young men and women in 
the United States of America reach their 
majority annually. Twelve times as many 
more are between the ages of fifteen and 
twenty. What a host of hopeful recruits are 
coming yearly into the wonderful possibili¬ 
ties of life’s great arena! They are to be 
congratulated upon coming into the kingdom 
of youth at this auspicious time. They are 
fortunate indeed to be reaching the roseate 
days of youth in the morning of this wonder¬ 
ful century and in the most wonderful coun¬ 
try of all ages. 

How delightful to be young anyway! To 
have red blood tingling in your veins, courage 
swelling in your heart, and a great ambition 
in your soul! Visions and dreams of the 
future crowd your mind, and hopes are bud¬ 
ding everywhere in the wildest profusion. 
What a heritage to have! 


(13) 



14 


Fundamentals of Success 


“A heritage, it seems to me, 

A king might wish to hold in fee.” 

This heritage at the present time is of 
peculiar value. To-day is the most interest¬ 
ing day in the history of the world. We are 
now in a transition period. The great World 
War has wrought a marvelous change. Old 
things in many particulars have passed 
away and are now in process of being 
made new. The old foundations have been 
broken up, and new foundations are being 
laid. Thrones have fallen, never to be re¬ 
established. Crowns have been lost, never 
to be regained. Kingdoms and empires have 
been dismembered. The world will never 
again be as it was before the fatal pistol shot 
that occasioned this awful conflagration. In 
Europe race prejudice, national hatred, and 
malignant distrust are rampant everywhere. 
Primitive lusts and passions appear as fierce 
and bitter as ever. It is natural that such 
awful results should follow such awful 
carnage. The civilization of Central Europe 
has been set back for a generation. The 
backwash of the war will not cease for years. 
Its evil influences are felt the world over. 
But as history repeats itself these bad in- 


Our Wonderful Day 15 

fluences will after a while lose their force and 
these evil days be gone. 

The very fact that these evil inAuences are 
to be overcome by the rising generation 
makes this the most interesting of all times. 
In material advancement and splendor there 
has never been a time in any way approach¬ 
ing ours. I had rather be living and able to 
work to-day than in any previous day. The 
times are pregnant with wonderful possibili¬ 
ties. To help make the moral and spiritual 
progress of to-day keep pace with the intel¬ 
lectual and material is enough to challenge 
the best that is in any youth. 

There have been other periods when civili¬ 
zation seemed to be reaching its zenith, but 
the world has never before seen such a day 
as ours. There may be greater days in the 
future—doubtless there will be greater days 
than ours—but the past has never witnessed 
so many wonders as we see to-day. Civiliza¬ 
tion under Hammurabi is now the admira¬ 
tion of scholars; the days of the Pharaohs 
were Ailed with wonders; the age of Pericles 
was marked by the most astonishing culture 
and learning. The time of Caesar was 
crowded with brilliant and thrilling events. 


16 Fundamentals of Success 

The reign of Elizabeth was signalized by the 
appearance of the most splendid literary 
genius. But no day has ever dawned in the 
history of the world comparable with the 
day in which we live. We witness the most 
brilliant achievements, the most bewildering 
progress, and the most splendid material 
civilization the world has ever known. We 
are doing things now that our fathers never 
dreamed about. Our ancestors could not 
foresee the comforts and conveniences, the 
general knowledge and mastery over the 
forces of nature that we enjoy. The ancients 
knew nothing of the wonders of steam and 
electricity. They never heard of a news¬ 
paper or a printing press. They knew noth¬ 
ing of a post office or a daily mail. Steam- 
heated buildings, electric lights, railways, 
telephones, and a thousand other conven¬ 
iences we have were not in their wildest 
dreams of progress. Their world was smaller, 
their knowledge more limited, and their 
comforts fewer. The homes of the most 
fortunate were cold, dark, and insanitary. 
They had no modern methods of keeping 
out the mice, fleas, flies, and mosquitoes, 
which infested their palaces. The front 


Our Wonderful Day 


17 


yards of aristocracy were not unfamiliar with 
mud and filth. They had no sewerage sys¬ 
tems, no spigots, no stoves. Their cities were 
dark and malodorous. Their streets were 
muddy and dangerous. Their property was 
unsafe—likely to be seized at any time by 
some greedy overlord. 

Dentistry was unknown. Physicians knew 
nothing of modern medicine or methods. 
The modem miracles of surgery and med¬ 
icine had never been conceived, and the 
wonders of chemistry and physics were be¬ 
yond their imagination. 

Travel was slow, difficult, and dangerous. 
It was effected usually by walking, or riding 
on the back of a beast of burden. Only in 
comparatively recent times did wheeled 
vehicles for travel come into general use. 
In 1568 England saw the first carriage, which 
was made for Queen Elizabeth. Journeys 
taken in those early days even by royal 
travelers were in springless coaches and over 
rocky or muddy roads. They had no ad¬ 
vantages of travel unknown to ancient As¬ 
syrians, Greeks, or Romans. But little im¬ 
provement had been made in the methods of 
travel from the days of Homer until the 
2 


18 


Fundamentals of Success 


second quarter of the nineteenth century, 
when steel railway transportation revolu¬ 
tionized everything. 

Merchandise was “shipped” overland from 
one place to another on the backs of men or 
beasts. Modern machinery and labor-sav¬ 
ing devices were entirely unknown. Fac¬ 
tories and furnaces had never been heard of, 
and a thousand inventions of to-day were 
not even in their far-flung dreams. 

Education, though limited, was confined 
to the favored few. Ignorance and supersti¬ 
tion, though common with the aristocracy, 
prevailed always among the masses, and their 
condition was generally most deplorable. 
They were held in the bondage of slavery 
and knew nothing of universal liberty. 

The comforts of modern life were unknown 
even among the princes of olden days. The 
clerk of to-day on forty dollars per week en¬ 
joys more conveniences than the kings of 
early England. The cozy bungalow with 
electric lights, steam heat, hot and cold 
water, sewerage, telephone connections with 
the world, a doctor around the corner, the 
church and preacher in easy reach, and an 
automobile in the garage represent comforts 


Our Wonderful Day 19 

and luxuries unheard of in the “good old 
days” of the past. 

The material progress of the last seventy- 
five years has been greater than the progress 
of all previous centuries combined. Since 
the discovery and use of fire by early man, 
upon which all advancement depended, 
there have been no such remarkable strides 
in civilization as during the past three- 
quarters of a century. Our marvelous dis¬ 
coveries |and inventions have brought us into 
a new era of light and splendor. Thunder¬ 
ing railways, clicking telegraphs, rumbling 
presses, speeding automobiles, broadcasting 
stations, and buzzing aeroplanes have hur¬ 
ried us into the most wonderful day of the 
world’s history. Nothing surprises in this 
day of progress; nothing is regarded as im¬ 
possible in this day of achievement. Wel¬ 
lington sent runners to inform London of his 
victory over French armies at Waterloo. 
They were days getting the joyous news to 
the English capital. In 1815 the news 
traveled so slowly in America that, weeks 
after the treaty of peace had been signed at 
Ghent, General Jackson fought the battle of 
New Orleans and whipped the invading 


20 Fundamentals of Success 

English from the field. In less than one 
hour after the signing of the armistice that 
ended the European war the whole allied 
world was rejoicing over the splendid victory 
that secured human liberty for future ages. 

To-day by means of the cable and wireless 
telegraphy we get the world news daily and 
know all the details of world interest before 
we retire at night. By radiophone the hu¬ 
man voice is heard from New York to 
London, and musical concerts given in 
Cincinnati are enjoyed in the homes of 
Texas. Watt with his puff of steam, Hoe 
with his revolving press, and Marconi with 
his electric wave have converged the whole 
world into a small neighborhood. Cities are 
like next-door neighbors, and continents are 
as only across the street. The size of the 
planet has been greatly reduced, and the eyes 
of the reporter are everywhere searching for 
items of interest to publish abroad. In 1829 
Andrew Jackson spent three weeks going by 
private conveyance to Washington to be in¬ 
augurated President of the United States, 
but now a Tennesseean could make the trip 
in a palace car in about a day and night or in 
an aeroplane in less than four hours. 


Our Wonderful Day 


21 


Edison has harnessed the subtle electric 
power and made it light our homes and 
streets and do the work of millions of men 
and horses. Radium and other radioactive 
substances have been discovered, and scien¬ 
tists now hope that in them we may have an 
unlimited supply of energy. Engineers have 
mastered not only the surface of the sea, but 
undersea crafts can plow their way below 
the battleships of the enemy and deliver in 
security their precious cargoes in foreign 
ports. “Bird men” are navigating aerial 
heights with safety, delivering mail, and 
business men by wireless telephones whisper 
their orders across the continent upon the 
waves of the mysterious ether. 

With a friction match we light a fire at any 
time and anywhere. The camera prints 
your exact physical likeness even in colors on 
a plate while you wait, and the phonograph 
takes a picture of your words and records the 
very tones and modulations of your voice. 
The Rontgen rays render your body trans¬ 
parent, revealing your bones and all internal 
organs, and aid in locating any foreign sub¬ 
stance. By the use of anaesthetics the most 
severe surgical operations are rendered pain- 


22 Fundamentals of Success 

less, and by antiseptics germs are destroyed 
and surgery made reasonably safe. The 
telescopic lens and photographers* plates 
have enabled us to discover and count 
millions of stars beyond the reach of the un¬ 
aided eye. By spectrum analysis we can as¬ 
certain their relative heat and chemical 
composition as well as discover the rate of 
motion of heavenly bodies which are en¬ 
tirely invisible. 

Medical science has made remarkable 
progress, and physicians and surgeons are 
doing things almost incredible. They trans¬ 
fuse blood from one person to another, 
transplant skin, transfer bones from a brute 
to a man, take out a portion of the brain, 
remove a kidney, and do many other won¬ 
derful things in safety. The care of the 
physician is coming now to discover the 
cause of disease and to seek its removal. 
National organizations have been formed to 
fight tuberculosis, guard against infant mor¬ 
tality, prevent congestion of population in 
cities, and secure better sanitation in facto¬ 
ries and workshops. Yellow fever has been 
practically stamped out; smallpox robbed of 
its terror; the cause and cure of hookworm 


Our Wonderful Day 


23 


made known; syphilis, cerebrospinal men¬ 
ingitis, and pellagra cured; typhoid, diph¬ 
theria, and many other diseases made less 
dangerous; and better treatment secured for 
all the ills to which flesh is heir. During the 
last few years the death rate has been re¬ 
duced ten per cent and the average length of 
life extended three years. With such mar¬ 
velous progress already recorded and with 
such endowments as the science of medicine 
now enjoys, shall we not hope for the final 
conquest of all disease germs and a still 
further extension of average mortality? 

In theoretical discoveries we are making 
the same rapid strides. In comparatively 
recent years scientists have made sure the 
determination of the mechanical equivalent 
of heat, leading to the principle of the Con¬ 
servation of Energy. They have established 
the molecular theory of gases. They have 
measured with almost absolute accuracy the 
velocity of light, discovered the functions of 
dust and the laws of definite and multiple 
proportions in chemistry. The nature of 
meteors and comets has been made known 
and the Glacial Epochs established. The 
cell theory and the recapitulation the- 


24 


Fundamentals of Success 


ory in [Embryology have been discov¬ 
ered as well as the germ theory in zymot¬ 
ic diseases. The nature and function of 
white blood corpuscles have been determined 
and many other astonishing things demon¬ 
strated. In Psychology, Anthropology, Ar¬ 
chaeology, Astronomy, and all other branches 
of learning we are making similar progress. 

In civil engineering nothing seems im¬ 
possible. Suspension bridges have spanned 
great rivers, mountains have been climbed 
and rivers tunneled by railways, “ sky- 
scraping” office buildings have been erected, 
and great street railways constructed under 
office buildings and city thoroughfares. 

We are moving so rapidly that one be¬ 
comes almost dizzy trying to keep pace with 
the rapid whirl of events. The oxcart of 
former years has been abandoned, and we 
whiz through the air in a flying machine at 
amazing speed. And yet the airship has its 
stabilizer, and “Safety first” is the watch¬ 
word. 

Just what will be the end of this rapid 
progress no man can tell. Scarcely do we get 
accustomed to one advance until another and 
more wonderful is announced. A battleship 


Our Wonderful Day 


25 


is not finished until a dreadnought is under¬ 
taken. Before the dreadnought is set afloat 
a super-dreadnought is started. Before the 
super-dreadnought is completed a torpedo 
boat is ready to blow it out of the water and 
an airship to attack it with a bomb from 
above and send it to the bottom of the sea. 
One device is scarcely completed until an¬ 
other is ready to surpass it. What will be 
the end of this constant march of progress? 

In all probability we are just getting 
started. The next fifty or seventy-five years 
will doubtless bring greater progress than the 
last. We seem to be moving with accelerated 
speed. Scientists and inventors and states¬ 
men and builders are not resting at ease. 
They seem in feverish anxiety to go forward 
with increasing momentum. They are not 
satisfied with present attainments; they 
desire better conditions and are striving 
with strong endeavor to obtain them. Dif¬ 
ficulties are in the way, but these difficulties 
will be removed, all obstacles will be over¬ 
come, and the line of march continued. The 
momentum already attained will not be lost, 
but rather accelerated. 

There is a greater amount of constructive 


26 


Fundamentals of Success 


thought in the world to-day than ever be¬ 
fore—social, political, economical; and all 
other problems are handled with more scien¬ 
tific skill and are seen in wider scope and with 
more breadth of vision than in former days. 

In America thousands of intelligent men 
and women are enlisted in the great work of 
social betterment, and social reforms are at 
work everywhere. Social problems of all 
kinds are being studied in the most scien¬ 
tific way, and the results of such study are 
being made known through books, magazines, 
lectures, and the daily press. The leaven of 
righteousness is at work. Vigorous war is 
being waged against all social wrongs, and the 
day is coming when these wrongs will be 
righted largely by the force of public 
opinion. 

The science of government is not lagging 
behind. Our laws are constantly being im¬ 
proved and the greatest good to the greatest 
number earnestly sought. The voice of the 
people is more potent and the will of the 
majority more effective than in any former 
day. While the strong are still inclined to 
impose on the weak and the few to reap the 
earnings of the many, the many are learning 


Our Wonderful Day 


27 


better how to protect themselves and to get 
their share of lawful profits. The wage 
earner is coming to a better day. 

Our educational facilities are better to-day 
than the world has ever known. We have 
more schools and better schools and more 
general intelligence among the masses than 
in any former age. Our public schools are 
more efficient, our colleges better equipped 
and more richly endowed than in any pre¬ 
vious day. A larger per cent of young peo¬ 
ple attend school, better work is being done, 
and a greater interest manifested in the cause 
of education than ever before. 

Before the World War moral standards 
were higher in America than at any previous 
age of our country. The mind of the public 
had been enlightened, the conscience quick¬ 
ened, and the general conduct improved. 
With sorrow and shame we must admit that 
moral standards have been lowered among 
the young as a result of this great holocaust. 
Such results always follow great wars. Let 
us hope for a speedy recovery from this awful 
lapse in moral conduct. 

The work of the Christian Church has 
grown more rapidly during the past seventy- 


‘28 Fundamentals of Success 

five years than in any such period during the 
Christian era. The membership of the 
Church has increased at a higher rate than 
the population of the country. The mis¬ 
sionary spirit has been marvelously in¬ 
creased, purse strings have been unloosed, 
theological differences have been minimized, 
and great forward movements successfully 
executed in all the great evangelical Church¬ 
es. Churches, hospitals, asylums, colleges, 
and various other institutions for the good of 
man have been established and the kingdom 
of God extended more rapidly than ever be¬ 
fore in our history. Leaders in the Church 
are awake to present and future possibilities, 
and great plans are now forming to meet the 
issues of the day with a most comprehensive 
program. 

The world is ready for a new and better 
era. The dawning of a better day is at hand. 
The future has many difficult problems to be 
solved, but it is full of hope and promise. 

The doctrine of universal brotherhood is 
being proclaimed as never before. Men of 
science as well as men of religion are forward¬ 
ing the conception, and the future will wit¬ 
ness its complete realization. The times are 


Our Wonderful Day 


29 


outgrowing purely local or state patriotism 
and demanding a worldwide love of men and 
country. The creation of the world state, 
dreamed of since the days of Plato, may yet 
be realized. (The League of Nations and a 
world court have already been established 
and are in operation.) Not that local 
patriotism is to be decried, but that world¬ 
wide patriotism may grow and universal 
brotherhood be accepted as taught by the 
Man of Galilee. It must be admitted that 
this progress is not so universal as it ought 
to be. A few men have attained these splen¬ 
did heights and are calling to their fellows to 
ascend to the same commanding view. 
These men have reached heights never 
thought possible by the most gifted men of 
former days. Others are ascending now; 
still others will follow, and after a while it 
may become general. A better day is 
dawning. 

How fortunate to be born in such an age 
and such a country! Every American youth 
ought to rejoice and be glad continually for 
his rich heritage in time and native land. 
It is better to live now in America than at 
any preceding age in the world’s experience. 


30 


Fundamentals of Success 


There are more advantages, more oppor¬ 
tunities, more possibilities now in America 
than in any other country and in our time 
than in any other age in the world. The 
future may be better. No man can tell what 
it has in store, but it is certain that no age in 
the past has been equal to Our Wonderful 
Day. The “good old days” of the past were 
glorious, but not comparable with our more 
glorious present. There were “giants in 
those days,” but there are also giants in 
these days—only we do not see them in 
perspective. There will be giants in the days 
to come. Will you be one? Let every Ameri¬ 
can youth rejoice and be glad that he comes 
into his strength in the most wonderful day 
of the most wonderful country in the history 
of the world. 


II 

GOLDEN OPPORTUNITIES 

America above all countries offers the 
open field and the large opportunity to the 
man of merit. Our resources are almost un¬ 
limited, our possibilities well-nigh unbound¬ 
ed. As a nation we are now in our infancy, 
scarcely out of our swaddling clothes, but 
with a great present and a more glorious 
future. Mr. Gladstone said: “America has 
a natural base for the greatest continuous 
empire ever established by man.” In this 
“natural base” we have undeveloped re¬ 
sources and latent possibilities so wonderful 
that they stagger the mind. Our climate is 
so varied, our soil so rich, our people so 
virile that they make this the land of para¬ 
dise for all who have the ability and dis¬ 
position to “make good” in a land where 
merit wins. 

While Europe has been engaged in the 
most destructive war of history, sacrificing 
on the field of battle her best treasures of 
blood and money, while she is yet torn by 
passion and prejudice, America has sacri- 

ran 


32 


Fundamentals of Success 


ficed but little and gained immensely in 
wealth and power. Here open fields abound 
everywhere for those who are willing and 
ready to enter and serve. There are no 
castes, no hard fixed strata of society through 
which a deserving man cannot break. The 
way is open from the humblest home to the 
White House if merit is there to win the way. 
Golden opportunities abound. No young 
man of health and ability need complain. 
Men of genuine merit have been winning 
their way from the beginning of American 
history. They are doing so to-day and will 
continue doing so for ages to come. 

There is no occasion for any American 
youth to quarrel with fortune if he has a 
good mind and a healthy body. While some 
appear to have a better start, there is room 
and opportunity for all in this land of free¬ 
dom and plenty. While circumstances play 
an important part in a man’s life, they do 
not wholly determine it. Circumstances do 
not “make the man” as some claim—they 
simply prove his mettle. Many of the most 
famous men of history seem to have been 
without favorable circumstances in the be¬ 
ginning of their careers. They forced cir- 


Golden Opportunities 


33 


cumstances. But many with everything to 
their advantage have come to naught. Mere 
outward circumstances cannot make a great 
man. With numerous presidents coming 
from humble origin and with countless self- 
made men in positions of honor and numbers 
of millionaires who started penniless, there 
is no room for any youth in our land to com¬ 
plain of having an unfair start if he has a 
healthy body and a good mind. Seventy- 
three per cent of our most successful men 
started poor. These all deny that a fortune 
or a “pull” is essential to begin a successful 
career. The sons of the rich and of the poor 
alike may succeed or they may fail. The 
sons of the city and of the country may 
reach the goal, or they may fall by the way. 
The circumstances of birth are not entirely 
decisive. Do not be discouraged, whatever 
the conditions that surround you in your 
youth. More than seventy per cent of the 
successful men of to-day have come from the 
poor but honest homes of the country. This 
ought to bring cheer and comfort to the 
heart of every youth struggling up from 
poverty. To start with no material pos¬ 
sessions is frequently a good beginning. 

3 


34 Fundamentals of Success 

From the home of every American youth 
who has health and reasonable ability there 
is a golden pathway leading to a life of noble 
service, competency, and honor. It is not 
always readily discovered or readily fol¬ 
lowed, but the pathway is surely there. 
There are no exceptions. It is hidden to the 
dull and stupid, but the bright and discern¬ 
ing will surely discover that pathway; and 
though it may be rough and thorny for a 
while, it will be followed carefully to its con¬ 
summation of plenty and honor. Because a 
blind man does not discover his path and 
walk therein is no evidence that the path is 
not there. Because some simple, unseeing 
youth fails to discover this all-important 
path, and therefore is never able to walk in 
its honorable way, is no evidence that the 
pathway does not exist. I have seen two 
brothers in the same home; one with the 
seeing eye discovered the path and walked 
therein to a life of honor and plenty, and the 
other having eyes could not see and never 
walked therein but lived in obscurity and 
poverty to the end of his days. “Abe” 
Lincoln, with clear eyes, saw the path 
gleaming through the forests and followed 


Golden Opportunities 


35 


it to the White House. John Wanamaker 
saw the hidden path from his home in the 
country and followed it to wealth and fame. 
Thousands have carefully sought out the 
way and followed with joy to honor and 
plenty. The less discerning have never seen 
the way, and failed to walk therein. 

Should wealth be the object of your ambi¬ 
tion, there are more golden opportunities in 
America to-day for the accumulation of 
money than ever before. Great fortunes 
have been more readily piled up in recent 
years than in any time in the history of our 
country. Only a few years ago it was 
deemed impossible for an honest man to 
amass a million-dollar fortune in a single 
lifetime. But the rapid rise of real estate, 
the development of vast oil fields and other 
natural resources, many useful inventions, 
the organization of large factories, railroads, 
and other business corporations have made 
possible in recent years great individual 
wealth without impoverishing others. 

Opportunities abound in America to-day 
for securing wealth as in no other country. 
All the fortunes have not yet been made. 
Many are in the process of making. More 


36 


Fundamentals of Success 


than thirty thousand millionaires have been 
made in America during the last ten years. 
Others will yet accumulate great wealth. 
Many of our richest men started without a 
dollar. By steadily pursuing fortune they 
have overtaken her. There is a chance for 
any young man who is willing to pay the 
price. But it requires the seeing eye to dis¬ 
cover those golden opportunities and the 
strong hand to lay hold on fortune. She is 
elusive. Only the discerning eye can dis¬ 
cover her presence and the strong hand hold 
her fast. Treat her gently, and she forsakes 
you. While millions are seeking her, only a 
few are able to find and hold her. I cannot 
advise any young man to set his heart on the 
accumulation of wealth. It is not in itself a 
worthy ambition. There is much danger in 
wealth. A simple competency is all any man 
needs or should desire. A very wise old man 
many years ago wrote his young friend in the 
following strain: “They that will be rich fall 
into a temptation and a snare, and into many 
foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in 
destruction and perdition. For the love of 
money is the root of all evil: which while 
some coveted after, they have erred from the 


Golden Opportunities 


37 


faith, and pierced themselves through with 
many sorrows. But thou, O man of God, 
flee these things; and follow after righteous¬ 
ness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meek¬ 
ness.” (1 Tim. vi. 9-11.) You will do well 
to heed this ancient advice in this modern 
day of fierce conflict. Wealth is not the 
summum bonum. The possession of great 
wealth is a great responsibility. It has 
cursed more than it has blessed. It cannot 
give the richest and fullest joys of life, while 
it brings many cares and pains. 

If you care to enter the realm of art, all 
the fields in America are wide open. Music, 
painting, sculpture—art in every form— 
offer inviting opportunities. Americans are 
now waking up to the value of art, and a 
more appreciative public is not to be 
found. 

In former years our people have been too 
busy with inventions, explorations, and the 
development of new industries; but how the 
taste for art is growing. American artists 
are coming to the forefront. It is no longer 
necessary for the talented student to go to 
Europe to get the best instruction, for the 
best is to be had in our own country. 


38 


Fundamentals of Success 


The field of science and scientific inven¬ 
tion is more alluring to-day than ever. The 
rapid progress made in recent years dazzles 
and bewilders. We scarcely get accustomed 
to one improvement when another is made. 
It seems that wonders will never cease. It 
was my pleasure a short time ago to stand 
in the broadcasting rooms of the Dallas News 
at Dallas, Tex., and speak to thousands in 
Dallas and throughout Texas, Oklahoma, and 
Louisiana, telling them of my wonderful ex¬ 
periences in Japan, Korea, Siberia, and 
Manchuria. The radiophone is the most 
wonderful triumph of modern science. 

In other domains the wonders are as great. 
In Astronomy, Biology, Physics, Chemistry, 
and other sciences marvelous progress is 
being made; yet no one of them is completed. 
New mysteries are being fathomed, and new 
light is being found constantly. The scien¬ 
tific world is in search of new knowledge all 
the time, and much is yet unknown. What 
more attractive field could be found for 
rendering distinguished service? 

The political arena in America to-day 
offers excellent opportunity for real service. 
While the game of politics is not always fair, 


Golden Opportunities 


39 


it is always interesting and exciting. It 
needs to be greatly improved. It is be¬ 
coming better, but vast improvements are 
yet necessary. William Jennings Bryan, 
Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, and 
many other distinguished Christian citizens 
have accomplished much in bettering the 
morals of our politics, but the good work has 
just begun. Many reformations are needed. 
More good men are required to help bring 
about these reformations. The whole atmos¬ 
phere must be clarified and a better moral tone 
maintained. The presence of more good men 
in this field is imperative. The low-minded 
and self-seeking must be eliminated before 
we can secure the best government. To 
render public service for the public good and 
not for personal profit ought to be the ambi¬ 
tion of many of our young men. The op¬ 
portunity for such service is all that could be 
desired. 

Journalism is to-day one of the most in¬ 
teresting fields open for talented young men 
and women. It offers rare opportunities for 
keeping in close touch with the great throb¬ 
bing heart of civilization and knowing in¬ 
timately what is going on throughout the 


40 Fundamentals of Success 

world. It gives the widest information and 
the broadest culture and stimulates every 
faculty of the mind. It puts you in touch 
with the world and makes you akin to 
humanity. 

Public opinion as expressed through the 
press is one of the most powerful factors in 
our civilization to-day. No man dares defy 
it. It is well-nigh all-powerful in a great 
democratic country like ours. The editorial 
columns of our daily papers in large measure 
control public opinion. They mold and 
fashion public sentiment as well as give it 
voice and circulation. There can scarcely be 
found a more influential position, a more 
powerful place than the editorial tripod of 
to-day. It is worthy of the greatest brains 
and hearts of our land. 

Our great editors are in constant touch 
with the whole world of news. Through 
their brains go all the throbbing pulses of 
civilization. The march of progress moves 
in review before them continuously. Their 
eyes and ears are in all the earth. They sit 
in judgment over kings and counselors, 
presidents and cabinets. They commend or 
condemn public men and measures. They 


Golden Opportunities 


41 


praise or laugh to scorn the actions of parties 
and conventions. Their voice is heard 
throughout the land on all public questions. 
No man is more powerful for good or evil. 
No man has a more commanding place or 
better opportunity for rendering conspicuous 
service. In this great field the harvest is 
white. 

In the Church among the most influential 
men of to-day are the editors of our religious 
periodicals. They sit as watchmen on the 
towers of Zion. They scan the horizon from 
afar. Through their editorial columns they 
speak to a vast host of readers. They not 
only instruct and inspire but in a large 
measure help to shape and determine the 
policies of the Church. Their ‘dinesare gone 
out through all the earth” and “their words 
to the ends of the world.” Their influence is 
felt and their power known in all parts of 
the kingdom. 

Literature likewise offers a most interest¬ 
ing field. “Of the making of books there is 
no end.” There never will be until the end 
of time. Men are thinking now more than 
ever, and they are writing their thought for 
the printed page. Books are coming from 


42 


Fundamentals of Success 


the press so fast that no man can ever hope 
to read even a small part of them. Books of 
all sorts—good, bad, and indifferent; books of 
facts and fiction; books of science and re¬ 
ligion; books of philosophy and fun; books 
of every sort and description—are pouring 
from the press in an endless stream. Some will 
do good; some will do harm; some will help; 
some will hinder. They are coming upon the 
public like an avalanche. Only a few of them 
will live. The rest will be read by a few and 
sink into oblivion—where they belong. 

We have a reading public to-day such as 
the world has never known. The appetite 
for books is insatiable. A few successful 
authors are making fame and fortune at the 
same stroke. Their books are sold by the 
thousands, and their names are on the 
tongues of all. Some of them may abide; 
many of them will soon be forgotten. Surely 
there can be found here room for many who 
look to this delightful field. 

Teaching appeals to many college students 
as especially desirable. To those who shrink 
from the fierce competition of the com¬ 
mercial world and who delight in the fellow¬ 
ship of the present-day scholars as well as 


Golden Opportunities 


43 


the great men of the past, the profession of 
teaching is most attractive. It has become 
more popular in recent years since a universi¬ 
ty president entered the White House in the 
person of Woodrow Wilson and taught the 
world some of its greatest lessons in state¬ 
craft. Other men also who have been at the 
head of great institutions of learning have 
been advanced in public political positions 
of national significance. 

The work of the teacher cannot be over¬ 
estimated. It is growing daily in im¬ 
portance. To-day we have more schools and 
better schools and more interest in the 
cause of education than ever in our history. 
New institutions of learning and research are 
being founded, old ones are being strength¬ 
ened and better equipped and endowed. 
Public free schools are being improved, and 
the cause of education is making general 
progress. The work of the teacher therefore 
is growing more important. The teacher is 
growing in public approval and has better 
recognition socially and financially. While 
no opportunities for affluence are expected, it 
offers freedom from strife and turmoil. It 
secures the association of thoughtful men of 


44 Fundamentals of Success 

to-day and all history and furnishes the op¬ 
portunity to deal with human lives in their 
plastic period. It affords a field for delight¬ 
ful and profitable service such as is offered 
by few of the other professions. A professor¬ 
ship in a reputable college is an ideal situa¬ 
tion for a happy and useful life. 

Especially does teaching appeal to the 
young women. It affords protection from 
promiscuous contact with the outside world, 
gives congenial employment that yields a 
comfortable livelihood, and furnishes an op¬ 
portunity to render service to the world in a 
most substantial way. To the young woman 
who is to make her own way in the world 
there is not to be found a more satisfactory 
field. It is genteel, safe, and praiseworthy. 
It has proved a popular profession and will, 
in all probability, continue one of the favor¬ 
ite occupations for women. They are es¬ 
pecially adapted to the work and should 
continue in ever-increasing numbers to enter 
this open door. 

Likewise in the Law, Medicine, Engineer¬ 
ing, Agriculture, Ministry, and many other 
fields there is abundant room for the exercise 
of talents and gifts of ev,ery order. We are 


Golden Opportunities 


45 


just getting started in the great march of the 
progress of the ages. No man can guess the 
end. Edison, Burbank, Marconi, and others 
have made a good start. Their work must 
be carried on. The greatest things are yet to 
be done. The best books and the most 
pleasing poems are yet to be written, the 
most beautiful paintings are yet to be put on 
canvas, and the most nearly perfect statuary 
to be carved out of marble. The greatest 
discoveries are yet to be made, the most 
wonderful feats of engineering to be ac¬ 
complished, and the greatest orations to be 
delivered. Who will be ready for these 
deeds? Who will rise to meet the oppor¬ 
tunities and win immortal fame? 

Yes, the opportunities abound to-day on 
every hand and will abound for time to come. 
New conditions arise, and man must rise to 
meet successfully his new situations. Op¬ 
portunity often comes in disguise. Only the 
seeing ones discover her presence and seize 
her before she is gone. The oil industry was 
open, and all the possibilities of its future 
were accessible to hundreds of ambitious 
Americans, but it took the shrewd eye of 
John D. Rockefeller to discover and develop 


46 Fundamentals of Success 

its almost boundless wealth. The auto¬ 
mobile business was open to thousands of 
American business men, but it took the clear 
eye of Henry Ford to discover the method 
of making the greatest success of the busi¬ 
ness. Our natural resources we had from 
the beginning of our history, but it required 
the clear vision of Gifford Pinchot to dis¬ 
cover the best method of conservation of 
the natural and make for himself a name 
that shall live in history. The possibilities 
for flying had been existent for years, but it 
took the Wright brothers to see how it could 
be successfully accomplished. 

Opportunity knocks at our door often, but 
we sometimes fail to recognize her presence. 
An artist has designed her as a statue with 
veiled face and winged feet: the veil over her 
face to indicate the difficulty in recognizing 
her when she comes, the winged feet to 
signify her ready flight when not immedi¬ 
ately seized. The successful man is he who 
is ever ready to recognize and seize her when 
she appears. The failure lets her pass un¬ 
known and unused. To be ready therefore 
for opportunity when she comes is one of the 
great secrets of successful living. 


Golden Opportunities 


47 


At a political convention in Chicago there 
was a brilliant young lawyer who by hard 
work had prepared himself for the occasion. 
He was waiting for the supreme hour to come 
in the convention hall. When it came he 
mounted the platform and by his personal 
magnetism, irresistible logic, and wonderful 
oratory he swept his audience like a mighty 
storm. When he finished that remarkable 
utterance, the Democratic nomination for 
presidency, recognized leadership, and im¬ 
mortal fame had been won by William Jen¬ 
nings Bryan, the peerless orator of America. 
Others were present who longed for leader¬ 
ship and fame, but they were not ready. 

Into whatsoever field of endeavor you may 
enter when the golden opportunity knocks, 
be ready, for such an hour as ye think not she 
may knock at your door. She is sure to visit 
your home at some time, but you must 
recognize her when she comes. If not 
seized immediately, she is gone. When once 
made secure, she is charming. She radiates 
joy and gladness. She brings power and 
leads to success. 


Ill 

THE DEMAND FOR MEN 

Never in the history of the world has 
there been such a persistent demand for real 
men as we witness to-day. There are more 
than one hundred million people in the 
United States, and more than twenty mil¬ 
lion between the ages of twenty-one and 
forty-five years of age are wearing trousers. 
But how many real men have we who are 
ready for the great issues of life? How many 
are prepared to stand in their places and 
successfully meet the great responsibilities 
that arise and bear their proportional part of 
life’s burden? How many manly men have 
we who can squarely face the stern realities 
of life and successfully overcome the daily 
difficulties? The supply, it must be ad¬ 
mitted, is far short of the demand. In the 
commercial world it sometimes happens that 
the oversupply of any given article makes it 
practically without value on the market. 
But never in the history of any country has 
the supply of strong, manly men exceeded 
the demand. 

(481 


The Demand for Men 49 

At this particular time in America the 
supply seems to be limited, and many fields 
of endeavor are not being properly worked 
for lack of suitable men. Progress in many 
places is being delayed for lack of men of 
genius who can pioneer the way. The call 
for men to-day is clearer, louder, stronger, 
and more persistent than ever before. From 
every field of human endeavor there goes out 
the cry for more well-equipped men. Fields 
are white unto the harvest, but the skilled 
laborers are few. There are millions who 
crowd and jostle each other in the struggle 
for bread, but there are few who can stand in 
conspicuous places and lead in the world’s 
progress. There are plenty of people —what 
the world need is a better brand of people 
and a wiser type of leadership. It needs 
great, strong men who can go forward in the 
march of human civilization. In persistent 
tones it is calling now for such men. There 
is much that must be done. 

There are more grave issues to be met, 
more hard problems to be solved, more 
weighty responsibilities to be assumed, and 
more golden opportunities to be enjoyed 
than in any previous day. The immigration 

4 


50 


Fundamentals of Success 


problem, the race problem, the suffrage 
problem, the child welfare problem, the 
conflict of capital and labor, the social evil, 
economic reforms, law enforcement in the 
whisky traffic, and many other important 
issues are now before the American people 
and must be met and successfully handled. 
Our future depends on how we deal with 
these grave issues. Better educational facili¬ 
ties, better sanitation, better transportation 
must be provided. Our national resources 
must be properly conserved and developed; 
the supply of food and raiment must be in¬ 
creased. Better conditions for the poor must 
be provided, better marriage and divorce 
laws enacted, and better provision for the 
health of our babies secured. In many ways 
our laws must be changed and our conditions 
improved, and the gospel must be preached 
to all. There is work in abundance—more 
than all can do. From every field of human 
endeavor there goes out a strong call for real 
men and women who are ready to lead in the 
march of progress. A world reconstruction 
program is before us, which will tax to the ut¬ 
most the strength of the greatest leaders of 
the times. 


The Demand for Men 


51 


The statesman was never in demand more 
than to-day. We have politicians to spare, 
but no statesmen to lose. We need great¬ 
brained, far-seeing statesmen with the world¬ 
wide vision. We need men with constructive 
genius who are big enough to know the needs 
of all and direct our government in the in¬ 
terests of the people. Sectional differences 
would then be entirely obliterated. The 
World War has done much to wipe out these 
distinctions, but still we do not have that 
great solidarity that should characterize a 
great nation. We are divided into more or 
less hostile sections. Our territory is so vast 
and our interests so diverse that it is some¬ 
times difficult to preserve the unity of spirit 
and purpose that should bless a country like 
ours. There are those in some parts of the 
country who are more or less prejudiced 
against those of other sections. Sometimes I 
find in the South an untraveled man with an 
inborn antipathy to the people of the North 
and East. In the North and East I find in 
men, sometimes in college professors, an 
utter lack of appreciation of the South and 
West and their virtues. In the university 
classroom of the East I have heard the vir- 


52 


Fundamentals of Success 


tucs of the Middle West and South dis¬ 
paraged. We are not yet as united as we 
ought to be. We are ready to fight a com¬ 
mon foe, of course, but we have not entirely 
forgotten the bitter days when we fought 
each other. In the United States Congress 
we have men who are sectional and preju¬ 
diced in their sentiments. Their patriotism 
is more or less local and provincial. They do 
not stand for the best interests of the whole 
country. We need men to-day without 
sectional jealousy, who are broad and big 
enough to love the whole country, men who 
are able to gather into their brains all the 
interests of all the people and bring about 
such constructive legislation as will conserve 
these results. We need men who are able to 
help weld the whole nation into one solid 
mass and give us the strength that comes from 
such unity of purpose and action. There are 
thousands of candidates everywhere seeking 
office for their own profit, unmindful of the 
public welfare. They want office to gratify 
vain ambition, or for the plunder and graft 
to be had. But what the country needs is 
patriotic men who desire to serve their 
country and, if need be, sacrifice personal 


The Demand for Men 


S3 


interests for public good. Such men are in 
demand to-day. The narrow, sectional 
politician ought to be retired and the broad- 
gauged statesman put in his place. There is 
a demand for such men, not only for the 
United States Congress, but for all offices in 
every State and county in the Union. Be¬ 
fore we can make the necessary progress in 
governmental affairs we must have this class 
of men. The demand is strong; the call is 
clear and loud. 

Big business interests are searching the 
country far and wide for capable young men 
who are fit for promotion to places of great 
responsibility. The material interests are 
outgrowing the supply of competent men. 
They are in search of wide-awake young 
fellows who are prepared for big things. 
They are looking for independent thinkers 
who can adapt themselves and their methods 
to changing conditions and get the proper 
results. They do not want men who must 
be watched and instructed in every detail. 
They want men with initiative who can 
watch the business interests of the firm and 
make new suggestions that will improve old 
methods and get better results. In other 


54 Fundamentals of Success 

words, they are looking for brains and 
character. They want results and must 
have them. If a young man cannot get 
good returns from his department, he is re¬ 
placed by a man who can. This same con¬ 
dition will continue for time to come. New 
conditions will arise. New men will be in 
demand. 

The men who are now in the forefront of 
the business world are men who “made 
good” as young men in what they under¬ 
took. The men who are in demand to-day 
and who u make good” will be the big busi¬ 
ness men of to-morrow. The young man who 
is competent and masters his part of the 
•business may soon be in charge of the whole 
establishment. From the commercial world 
the demand for real men is very insistent. 
Thousands of good places are in search of 
competent men. The call is from every part 
of the country. 

The medical fraternity is also in need of 
men of genius who can help solve the hard 
problems confronting the doctors^ They 
have accomplished wonders already, but 
their work will never be fully done. One 
disease after another has been mastered, but 


The Demand for Men 55 

some germs seem elusive and hard to con¬ 
quer. These germs must be understood and 
controlled. The doctors’ fight will not be 
over until the last enemy—death—has been 
overcome. The human body will always be 
heir to aches and pains, and the work of the 
doctor will never be finished. 

No field anywhere offers better oppor¬ 
tunities than that offered to the faithful 
physician. He is the closest adviser of the 
family. He knows the family secrets as no 
outside man. He comes as the confidential 
man to look after the health of the body. 
He has the precious privilege of relieving 
pain and preventing disease and premature 
death. 

The practice of preventive medicine is the 
practice of the future. The world is calling 
for doctors who will prevent diseases and 
keep them from spreading. We want men 
who will keep us well—not simply help to 
cure us when we get sick. The doctors who 
lead out in this work will strike the popular 
chord and secure public favor. The doctors 
have a fine field, and their work will ever be 
in demand. What a blessed ministry is 
theirs! 


56 Fundamentals of Success 

Great gospel preachers are more in de¬ 
mand to-day than ever. Golden-mouthed 
orators have always been heard with glad¬ 
ness. But to-day witnesses an unusual de¬ 
mand for men who can bring the gospel 
message with authority and power. The 
pew demands it. This is an age of education 
and progress. Men are reading and think¬ 
ing as in no previous day. The railroad, the 
printing press, the schoolhouse, the tele¬ 
graph, the daily mail, the auto, and the 
telephone have brought men together. They 
have compelled us to think; they have 
brought information. They have dissemi¬ 
nated light and learning. The people are 
more thoughtful. The methods of forty 
years ago in the pulpit will not reach men 
to-day. The pew is progressing. It is read¬ 
ing; it will not listen to a dull or ignorant 
man. The preacher who gathers and holds 
his congregation to-day must know and 
preach a living gospel in the terms of the 
present age. If he cannot preach, his 
church will be deserted. If he can, it will be 
filled to overflowing. “Wherever there is a 
pulpit on fire there will always be a crowd 
to watch it burn.” The preacher who can 


The Demand for Men 


57 


really preach and be a pastor is in demand 
everywhere. He need not fear the news¬ 
paper will ever supplant him. The human 
voice and personality can never be sub¬ 
stituted by the press, powerful as it may be. 

Theology to-day is in a state of transition. 
Many good men have been shaken somewhat 
and are not sure of their ground. Some of 
the theological seminaries have drifted away 
from old moorings. Recently in a private 
interview I told a theological professor that I 
could not accept many of the doctrines he 
and his colleagues were teaching. He frank¬ 
ly replied: “We do not care whether you be¬ 
lieve them or not. We may not believe them 
ourselves next year, but it is the best we 
know now.” I do not want a gospel of this 
kind. I want the open mind, and I accept 
the idea of a progressive Christianity, but I 
prefer to be sure about some things. On the 
great fundamentals I prefer a fixed faith. 
The ring of St. Paul’s message is true, when 
to Timothy, his son in the gospel, he says: 
“I know whom I have believed, and am 
persuaded that he is able to keep that which 
I have committed unto him against that 
day.” The pew of to-day wants a gospel of 


58 


Fundamentals of Success 


ringing assurance and not of quibbling 
doubt. It demands a man who knows his 
ground and can stand against the world of 
doubt and agnosticism. It requires a man 
of heart and brains who can preach with as¬ 
surance the everlasting gospel of the Son of 
God. 

The demand for well-equipped men in the 
ministry is most insistent. While the ranks 
are not being depleted by the urgent call to 
secular fields, yet the exigencies of the hour 
are such that more strong men are needed to 
carry on the great work of Christian evangel¬ 
ization. 

The demand foi pulpit men will grow with 
the increasing years. No field offers a finer 
opportunity for noble, self-sacrificing men 
who are willing, as was their Lord, “not to 
be ministered unto, but to minister, and give 
their lives for others.” 

The demand for good lawyers will always 
be imperative. We must have them, be¬ 
cause we cannot all see alike and cannot 
therefore always agree. Our minds are 
differently constituted. Our viewpoints are 
different, and we therefore differ in judgment. 

We must have lawyers and judges to help us 


The Demand for Men 


59 


to compose our difficulties and adjust our 
differences. The mental constitution of 
man will remain unchanged, and therefore as 
long as the world stands the lawyer will be in 
demand. There are now 132,000 practicing 
lawyers in our country—some of them 
making large fees and winning honors every¬ 
where, while others are eking out a miserable 
existence in obscurity and poverty. But the 
demand for efficient men in the practice of 
the law is urgent. The conflicting interests 
of this complicated age demand skilled men 
at law in order to preserve justice for all. 

The lawyer needed is the one who will 
keep his client out of court and adjust dif¬ 
ficulties without a suit. The field is inviting, 
the fees are attractive, the work is honorable, 
the call is strong. 

The civil engineer in recent years is grow¬ 
ing more and more in demand. This has 
become one of the most attractive fields for 
young men, and in increasing numbers they 
are turning in this direction. In America 
there are so many railroads to be built or 
improved, so many dams to be constructed, 
so many cities to be improved, so many 
mines to be opened, and so many other 


60 Fundamentals of Success 

things to be done that first-class civil 
engineers cannot be had to supply the de¬ 
mand. When natural resources are to be 
exploited, new towns to be laid out, big ships 
or big skyscrapers to be built, or any other 
big development, the civil engineer will be in 
demand. While the growth of the country 
continues, while improvements are neces¬ 
sary, the work of the civil engineer will be 
necessary and his services required. 

Inventive genius is in greater demand in 
this day than ever before. This is an age of 
invention and discovery. The world de¬ 
mands the best material civilization that 
can be had. It wants the best lights, the best 
foods, the best clothing, the best houses, the 
best everything that can be had. The man 
who can improve on anything we now have, 
suggest or invent a better method of getting 
desired results, is the man from whom the 
world wants to hear. Edison has achieved 
honor and wealth by his inventions. His 
name is a household word in all America. He 
is one of the best-known men in our land. 
No man has rendered greater service to his 
race or more deserves the honor shown him. 
His inventions and discoveries have ad- 


The Demand for Men 


61 


vanced civilization more than those of any 
other man of this day or any other day. 

He has started a host of others to work in 
the same line. But he has by no means ex¬ 
hausted the possibilities of inventive genius. 
Other inventions still greater are awaiting 
us; the world demands them. 

Agricultural science to-day offers a most 
inviting field. The farm is stretching forth 
her arms in earnest entreaty. She is calling 
for men who love nature and the smell of the 
fresh turned soil, who know the advantages 
of the open air, and appreciate the free and 
independent life of the farmer and his op¬ 
portunity for peace, plenty, and repose. 
With the strong tendency to the already 
overcrowded city, with the increasing ap¬ 
preciation of agricultural products, with im¬ 
proved roads, with the advent of rural free 
delivery of mail, the telephone and better 
schools, with improved conditions for pro¬ 
ducing, harvesting, and marketing the crop, 
the farm now offers flattering inducements. 

The farmer has always been the bedrock 
of civilization. When he fails, the world is 
in want. When he produces an abundant 
harvest, all rejoice in prosperity. He feeds 


62 Fundamentals of Success 

and clothes the people and causes them to 
abound in plenty. His life is the most peace¬ 
ful and independent. The open field, the 
fresh air, and the closer touch with nature 
make him a blessed man. Freedom from 
the temptations and allurements of city vice, 
the opportunity to develop a healthy body 
and mind, and the close touch with nature 
make the farm the best place to rear a fami¬ 
ly. From the farm come the great majority 
of our successful men. To the farm we are 
indebted for many of our most useful and 
progressive citizens. A nation-wide “oack 
to the farm” movement should be inau¬ 
gurated. The people who are on the farm 
should be kept there if possible, and many 
others induced to return to the quiet and 
peaceful pursuits of the country home. The 
demand from this quarter of the world is 
clear and strong. 

From many other fields, too numerous to 
mention, the cry is for more prepared men. 
They are in demand everywhere. The sup¬ 
ply can never equal the demand. The world 
is in need, not of more people, but of more 
great, true, and noble men. It demands men 
of vision, brains, and character. 


IV 

THE VALUE OF A MAN 

Man occupies in nature a place peculiar to 
himself. The materialist regards him as 
only a material being, closely connected with 
nature but nature’s highest manifesta¬ 
tion. The Christian looks upon him not only 
as a material being, but also as a spiritual 
being, closely connected with the spiritual 
universe and the crowning glory of all God’s 
creative skill. Compared with the material 
universe and considered only as a material 
being, he sinks into utter insignificance. At 
eventide he looks up to behold thousands of 
stars in the heaven above. He discovers that 
this little planet on which we live is only one 
of the smallest. Thirteen hundred worlds 
like ours rolled into a vast heap would 
scarcely equal Jupiter, one of our sister 
planets. But Jupiter compared with the 
sun is only a mere toy, more than a thousand 
such being necessary to rival the mass of the 
great king of day. And yet the telescope 
reveals the marvelous fact that 550,000 suns 
like ours would be required to equal Arctu- 

( 63 ) 


64 


Fundamentals of Success 


rus, one of the fixed stars. Astronomers tell 
us that Arcturus is 73,000,000 miles in 
diameter and so far removed that, though it 
seems to be traveling toward us at the rate 
of fifty miles per second, it would require 
one hundred thousand years to come within 
dangerous proximity to the solar system. 
Such distances and magnitudes are entirely 
beyond our comprehension. Recently an 
astronomer announced that Betelgeuse, one 
of the stars in the constellation Orion, was 
twenty-seven million times larger than our 
sun! In every direction the heavens are 
filled with shining orbs of light. With the 
naked eye six thousand stars are visible on a 
clear night. A good field glass will help us to 
find one hundred and sixty thousand. A 
first-class telescope reveals six hundred and 
forty thousand. By the aid of the telescope 
and photographer’s plate the astronomers 
find one hundred and sixty million stars. 
They tell us that if we had a larger lens or a 
more sensitive plate still other stars could be 
discovered. Who can count the numberless 
systems or measure the boundless space 
through which they move with such marvel¬ 
ous harmony? Systems upon systems are 


The Value of a Man 


65 


revealed in endless, boundless profusion. 
Who can know the end? Our little planet 
appears but a tiny mote floating out in the 
broad expanse of measureless space. And 
what is man upon the earth? Comparative¬ 
ly not more than the smallest insect creeping 
upon the mighty mountain side, the smallest 
infusoria in the mill pond. When the sweet 
singer of Israel sat under the starry heavens 
and looked up to behold the glory of God in 
those radiant orbs of light, we are not as¬ 
tonished that he broke forth in that sublime 
strain: “When I consider thy heavens, the 
work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, 
which thou hast ordained; what is man, that 
thou art mindful of him?” 

When only physical dimensions are taken 
into account and he is compared with the 
great material universe, man sinks into ut¬ 
ter insignificance. But we must remember 
that values are not found in masses and 
magnitudes. If this were true, a lump of 
stone or coal would be of more value than 
the Kohinoor and a fat ox worth more than 
Luther, Wesley, Gladstone, Lincoln, Lee, 
and Woodrow Wilson combined. 

When considered in relation to the earth 

5 


66 


Fundamentals of Success 


upon which he lives, we begin to see more of 
his importance. When we study the forma¬ 
tion of this little planet and the wonderful 
secrets which her rocks reveal, when we look 
at nature in all her beauty and diversified 
forms, with her complex laws and marvelous 
harmony, we must believe that “through 
the ages one increasing purpose runs,” that 
in the Divine mind there was a definite end 
in view: and that end was to prepare a suit¬ 
able place for the habitation of an intel¬ 
ligent being—Man. 

During the countless ages of geological 
time the rocks were stratified, metamor¬ 
phosed, and crystallized so as to provide him 
with the most perfect material for his art— 
his statues, his temples, his dwellings. By 
the action of chemical and physical forces 
the more useful metals were gathered into 
veins that he might the more easily secure 
them for his service. Ages were occupied in 
locking up within the bosom of the earth 
sunbeams transformed into gas, oil, and coal, 
that he might have an abundance of fuel. 
The earth heaved and from old ocean raised 
herself and bared her bosom that upon it he 
might find a stage for his action. Conti- 


The Value of a Man 


67 


nents were clustered mostly in the northern 
hemisphere in order to bring nations into 
closer union. Mountains tower their tall 
heads against the heavens to temper the 
fevered winds. Moisture rises from the sea 
and by gentle breezes is borne inland to 
be deposited, watering the thirsty land, 
causing the earth to yield her fruit, supply¬ 
ing man with springs and fountains, and 
affording facilities for his commerce and 
travel. 

Plant life was constantly striving through 
a long line of progression to be ready for his 
coming. Useless parts were laid aside and 
new forms were assumed. And now her 
luscious fruits yield food for his sustenance; 
cotton, flax, and hemp afford texture for his 
raiment; the pine, the cypress, and the oak 
produce material for his dwellings, imple¬ 
ments, and vehicles of transportation; her 
flowers, from the dainty little daisy peeping 
from beneath the sod to the stately magnolia, 
delight the eye and please the sense of 
smell. 

The animal kingdom is also ready for his 
coming, and with flesh for food, beasts for 
his burdens, fur and skins for clothing and 


58 Fundamentals of Success 

protection from wintry blasts, she comes and 
lays her richest treasures at the feet of her 
lord and master. All nature seems to have 
been working in beautiful harmony for the 
accomplishment of this one great end, and 
without this end all would have been mean¬ 
ingless and to no purpose. 

Imagine yourself a spectator of the su 
lime scene of creation and looking upon the 
earth before the appearance of man. Think 
of her as she moves in silent grandeur along 
her trackless path, making her circuit about 
the great sun. 

She is bathed in an ocean of sunlit glory. 
Her silvery seas and limpid lakes glitter like 
mirrors of burnished steel. Her flying clouds 
and fleeting shadows chase each other in 
rapid succession. The land divides t e 
water; the mountains stand as silent senti¬ 
nels of the ages; rivers sweep in grandeur 
through their mighty channels; imposing 
forests wave their tinted foliage; trees and 
vines are laden with luscious fruit; cattle 
browse upon a thousand hills; the lovely 
violet is bathed in the fresh morning sun¬ 
light and kissed into beauty by the gentle 
zephyr; the dewdrop sparkling upon the 


The Value of a Man 


69 


green blade catches up and reflects all the 
glories of the heavens above. Hear the 
sweet music of warbling birds, of murmuring 
brooks, catch the faint roaring of the dis¬ 
tant cataract. All nature is full of melody! 
What does it mean? Can this be the end of 
creation? Could such an end be worthy of 
such a God, worthy of him who sits upon the 
throne of the universe and orders all things 
wisely and well? All this is but the prepara¬ 
tion for a higher, grander, and nobler work. 
Behold yon lovely garden. See those tower¬ 
ing trees and clambering vines that make 
great archways of cooling shade. The trees 
are burdened with rich and luscious fruit, and 
in the garden there is all that could be de¬ 
sired. Flowers in profusion bloom and 
perfume the morning air with aroma rich and 
rare. Fountains perennial flow cooled with 
mountain snow, and brooklets steal their 
threadlike ways beneath overhanging shade. 
Amid the trees are birds with songs and 
plumage rare that make melody on morning 
air with notes of sweetest harmony. But 
look! In a sequestered nook beneath over¬ 
hanging shade a being stands erect and at his 
side a female form. Their eyes are turned 


70 


Fundamentals of Success 


heavenward. They are praising the author 
of their being. They have found God. 

Now we know why the rose is penciled 
with such exquisite beauty and the lily 
tinted with such delicate shadings—why all 
nature is clothed with such loveliness as to 
ravish the heart of the angels of God. It is 
all to adorn and beautify the home of man, 
to please the eye and delight the heart of 
God’s own child, to satisfy the creature made 
in his own image and with whom he was well 
pleased. Through the long line of continued 
progress “ Nature has been pregnant with 
man.” Now he is brought forth as the fitting 
climax and crowning glory of all created life. 
Being “fearfully and wonderfully made,” he 
is worthy of the workmanship even of an 
infinite God. He is indeed a marvel of in¬ 
ventive genius and skilled workmanship. 

Man is not only material and closely con¬ 
nected with the material universe, but he is 
also spiritual and vitally connected with the 
great spiritual universe. God has “made 
him a little lower than the angels and 
crowned him with glory and honor.” Mat¬ 
ter is dead, lifeless, and moves only as it is 
moved upon, but man is a living, active, in- 


The Value of a Man 


71 


telligent force. By the marvelous powers of 
his mind he is placed at almost infinite dis¬ 
tance above all other divisions of the animal 
kingdom. He stands in a peculiar relation to 
the unity of God’s great system. He is an 
epitome of the universe. In him the seen 
and the unseen meet. Being material and 
immaterial, he stands as the connecting link 
between the visible and the invisible world. 
Being both physical and spiritual, he stands 
in the closest connection with the physical 
and spiritual universe. Like the great 
Creator, he is a trinity in unity. Being but 
one, he is threefold in his nature, having a 
body, soul, and spirit. His body is the low¬ 
est part of his nature, being composed of 
material elements the base of whose com¬ 
pound is dust. Of its own self it is helpless, 
being a marvelous arrangement of passive 
organs without any ability to originate force, 
but capable only of serving as a tabernacle 
for the indwelling of the soul, an instrument 
for the higher and nobler part of man. It is, 
however, very essential to his present state. 
It is the most marvelous chemical compound 
known, the most wonderful organization of 
the material universe, and the masterpiece of 


72 Fundamentals of Success 

God’s terrestrial workmanship. At the pres¬ 
ent we need not enter further into the details 
of the wonderful organization and match¬ 
less arrangements of this house which God 
has given the soul of man, but dismiss it by 
saying that upon the construction of this 
perishing frame it seems the wisdom of an 
infinite God has all but been exhausted. 
But this body, wonderful as it may be, must 
not be regarded too highly. It is but the 
tabernacle of clay in which the man dwells. 
The body is not the man; it is only the house 
in which he lives. 

St. Paul says: “There is a natural body, 
and there is a spiritual body.” While this 
natural body is the masterpiece of God’s 
material workmanship, that which places 
man at an infinite distance above all ter¬ 
restrial creations is the marvelous power of 
his mind. The immaterial mind sits upon 
its throne and rules over the material man. 
The mind commands, the body must obey. 
It gives the word; the body must hear and 
heed. 

Bishop Marvin has well said that true 
value begins in consciousness. The huge 
bowlder of limestone may overhang the 


The Value of a Man 


73 


babbling brook, but it catches no strain of 
the musical murmuring. It may be pro¬ 
tected from the scorching sun by towering 
trees, but it rejoices not in such protection. 
It may be overhung with clambering vines 
that emit their daily perfume, but it is not 
regaled by such aroma. It is lifeless, being 
the lowest form of the kingdom of nature. 

The stalwart oak—a higher form in the 
realms of nature, being capable of life, 
growth, and death—may stand upon the 
hillside, its strong arms having wrestled 
successfully with a thousand storms, yet it 
rejoices not in its strength. The fowls of the 
air may shelter amid its branches and the 
beasts of the field gather under its shade, yet 
it is unconscious of its benefactions. It cares 
not whether the balmy breezes, soft sunlight, 
and gentle rains of spring touch it into new¬ 
ness of life and clothe it in garments of 
verdurous beauty, or the blighting blasts and 
freezing frosts of chill December disrobe it 
and turn its bare arms to the wintry winds. 
It rejoices not in life, it weeps not at death. 
It is altogether unconscious. 

The tiny sparrow that sits among the 
strong branches and twits its morning song 


74 


Fundamentals of Success 


is higher in the scale of being than the sturdy 
oak. While the monarch of the forest is in¬ 
capable of joy or sorrow, neither knowing, 
willing, nor feeling, the sparrow can rejoice in 
the morning sun; its tiny heart may be 
thrilled with the cheerful note of its mate, or 
possibly it may grieve at the loss of its 
young. 

Man is keenly conscious of his own in¬ 
dividual existence , differentiating himself 
from all things else. He finds nothing, for 
range and depth, comparable with his own 
consciousness in all the world below him. 
Even at an early state the child discovers its 
identity, its personality, and claims its toys 
as an individual property. He can ask more 
questions than the wisest philosopher can 
answer. All nature is full of mystery for 
him. Before his astonished eyes she dis¬ 
plays the beauties of color. To his taste she 
ministers strange and gratifying flavors. 
Into his listening ears she pours the melody 
of sweet music. He inquires, he seeks to 
know. And this very power of asking ques¬ 
tions and searching for information stamps 
him with high value. No other animal is 
endowed with such characteristics. 


The Value of a Man 75 

Man not only asks questions and searches 
after information, but he is capable of reason, 
of collating facts, and from known facts 
reaching safe conclusions concerning the un¬ 
known. He is a thinking creature and 
gifted with the most marvelous genius. 

Let your mind run back the line of history, 
even to the very dawning of the morning of 
civilization, and in the early days of recorded 
human civilization a mind is found capable 
of producing that marvelous book of Job. 
In the earliest days of Greece, from door to 
door blind Homer sings in musical rhythm 
the sweetest poetic strains that have ever 
fallen from human lips. 

Behold Plato constructing a system of 
philosophy, searching into the deep and 
hidden things of nature, delving into pro¬ 
found mysteries, and amid all the darkness 
of heathenism reaching out and feeling after 
God. Consider Julius Caesar, who is at the 
same time a polished poet, a correct and 
comprehensive historian, a profound philoso¬ 
pher, a far-seeing statesman, a competent 
ruler, and a most illustrious general and 
consummate military genius. Think of 
Galileo turning the first telescope into the 


76 


Fundamentals of Success 


midnight heavens and discovering the move¬ 
ments of those luminous orbs, of Newton 
weighing the very earth itself and all the 
solar system beside, of Herschel taking 
stellar parallax and computing the distance 
of stars, and of Leverrier and Adams as they 
sat in their studies and, on account of small 
discrepancies of the prescribed path of 
Uranus and the one actually followed, were 
enabled to determine by mathematical cal¬ 
culation almost the exact place in the 
heavens of the disturbing planet, Neptune. 

Behold Robert Fulton ascending the Hud¬ 
son in the first steamboat, Morse as he sits in 
his office and sends the first message flying 
upon the wings of lightning to a distant city, 
Cyrus Field as he lays the great cable across 
the bottom of the ocean and communicates 
with the men of another continent, Bell with 
his telephone speaking face to face with men 
five thousand miles away, Edison with all 
his marvelous inventions, Marconi with his 
wireless telegraphy, the Wrights in their 
flying machines—and tell me that the mind 
of man is not the most marvelous thing in all 
the terrestrial works of God. 

No man can prescribe a limit for its de- 


The Value of a Man 


77 


velopments. Its possibilities are unlimited. 
The acme of human achievement has by no 
means been attained, and no man can say 
where the mind must stop in its marvelous 
march of progress and say: “Thus far shalt 
thou go and no farther.” Who can guess the 
final end and ultimate achievement of the 
genius of man? 

Created in the image and likeness of God, 
he stands erect, dresses in comfortable gar¬ 
ments, handles tools, makes bargains, uses 
an articulate language, thinks, laughs, and 
worships the Supreme Ruler of all. “What 
a piece of work is a man! How noble in 
reason! how infinite in faculty! in form and 
moving how express and admirable! in ac¬ 
tion, how like an angel! in apprehension, 
how like a god! the beauty of the world! the 
paragon of animals!” Who can estimate the 
value of such a being? Can his price be 
fixed in gold and silver? The Master hath 
said: “What shall it profit a man, if he shall 
gain the whole world , and lose his own soul?” 
Man was of such priceless value that the 
richest jewel that could be found in all the 
paradise of God , even his own beloved Son, 
was sacrificed for his redemption. Man is 


78 


Fundamentals of Success 


immortal. He shall live forever. He is made 
in the image of the eternal God. His value 
is above price. His body is small very 
small—but O, the grandeur, the incon¬ 
ceivable grandeur and glory of his destiny as 
an immortal mind! When the heavens have 
passed away with a great noise and the ele¬ 
ments have melted with fervent heat, when 
all the material universe has fallen to pieces, 
the immortal mind of man will just be en¬ 
tering upon the morning of its eternal day. 

“Behold this midnight glory—worlds on worlds. 

Amazing pomp! redouble the amaze; 

Ten thousand add and twice ten thousand more; 
Then weigh the whole; one soul outweighs them all, 
And calls unintelligent creation poor.” 

May God help us humbly to recognize our 
value when thus considered under the light 
of his word and to act as becometh creatures 
of such noble value and wonderful pos¬ 
sibilities. 


HEREDITY 


When we consider the marvelous powers 
of the human mind, the priceless values of 
man’s soul and the dignity of his position in 
nature, we are persuaded that in the produc¬ 
tion of man creative skill has reached its 
culmination. The development of a human 
being from the germ cell to an adult, with all 
his physical, mental, and moral capabilities, 
is the climax of all wonders. When we think 
of the great men of the earth, we consider 
them in the full splendor of their powers. 
Yet the biologist tells us that each human 
being begins as a microscopic cell too small 
to be seen by the unaided eye. In this tiny 
germ cell are locked up all the possibilities of 
a Wesley, a Beethoven, or a Gladstone. 

Prof. E. G. Conklin says: “Individual 
development begins with the fertilization of 
the female sex cell by a male sex cell. . . . 
The human ovum is microscopic in size, 
while the male gamete is among the smallest 
of all cells and is usually many thousands 
of times smaller than the ovum.” But 

( 79 ) 


80 


Fundamentals of Success 


at this infinitesimal point every hu¬ 
man life has its beginning. Just how 
this microscopic point can be . invested 
with all its wonderful potentialities is beyond 
the reach of human understanding. Yet it is 
evident that from this germ cell our individ¬ 
ual existence begins. This fertilized germ 
cell contains none of the structure of the de¬ 
veloped adult, as bones, brains, or nerves, 
though it may contain specific kinds of 
protoplasm which may develop specific tis¬ 
sues or organs of the adult. From this germ 
cell by division arise many others which 
differ more and more until the complete 
human being is produced in all its parts. 

In the development of a human being 
there are four fundamental factors: heredity, 
environment, will, and divine grace. An 
exact value cannot be assigned to any one of 
these four factors. They act and react upon 
one another in a very remarkable way. 
The influence of each is so intimately con¬ 
nected with the others that it is impossible 
to disentangle them and assign an exact 
value to any one factor. The resultant of the 
four forces is the complete man. The great 
problem of human development is the proper 


Heredity 


81 


adjustment of these factors in order to pro¬ 
duce the noblest order of manhood. They 
operate simultaneously and continuously. 

With the physical development is the 
parallel development of the mind. The two 
develop together from the germ. As the 
body begins its wonderful growth, so does the 
mind. This, at first blush, may seem a 
trifle materialistic; but it is no greater won¬ 
der that God has made us to begin body and 
mind together from this infinitesimal point 
than to create the mind and soul of each at 
birth, or at any other given moment of time. 
It is evident that the greatest minds were 
once infants and without knowledge of any 
kind. There is nowhere in the mental de¬ 
velopment a sudden outburst of mental 
powers—it always comes gradually. To say 
that mind begins development simultaneous¬ 
ly with the development of the body does not 
say that matter is the cause of mind. The 
germ cell is a living thing, and to associate 
the mind with the material protoplasm is no 
more materialistic than to have the mind 
associated with the body of an adult. 

The thing that concerns us at this particu¬ 
lar moment is the relative value that can be 
6 


82 Fundamentals of Success 

assigned to heredity in the making of a man. 
How far is the individual influenced by his 
birth, and what value must be assigned to 
his inheritance? 

The doctrine of heredity is the central 
problem in biology, and it is becoming more 
evident that heredity has a more marked in¬ 
fluence on life than scientists at one time 
thought. It circumscribes our possibilities. 
The individual has nothing to say about 
what shall be the nature of his inheritance. 
He must accept such as he finds and do the 
best he can with it. 

Heredity is the fundamental factor in the 
making of a man. There must be capacity 
born in a boy, or there can be no possibility 
of making a real man out of him. You can¬ 
not polish a limestone pebble into a spar¬ 
kling diamond. You cannot make a race 
horse out of a donkey, it matters not how 
well you may train him. Neither can you 
take a poorly born boy without blood or 
brains and by any sort of process develop 
him into a great-brained, far-seeing states¬ 
man. Brains must be born with a boy; they 
cannot be given to him after birth. You 
cannot make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear. 


Heredity 


83 


No college or university course can give 
brains to a blockhead. The college is not 
often to be blamed when a boy fails to gradu¬ 
ate or does not graduate with honors. The 
school can train and polish a bright mind for 
the student; the student must get his natural 
capacity from his ancestors. But if gifted 
with normal capacity, by personal applica¬ 
tion he can greatly improve his natural gifts. 
In this fact of personal equation lies the hope 
of many young men. 

In the plant world every seed produces its 
own kind. Yellow corn produces yellow 
corn. It can produce no other kind. Sea 
island cotton planted will yield nothing but 
its own kind. An American beauty rose 
is not expected to bear a lily any more than 
a violet to grow a sunflower. The germ cell 
of a plant always produces its own kind. 
This law of nature holds true in all the 
vegetable kingdom. 

By cross fertilization of certain plants it 
has been discovered that the laws of heredity 
in the plant world are reasonably sure and 
steadfast. There is not the same rigid ex¬ 
actness that obtains in Chemistry and Phys¬ 
ics, for these deal not so much with living 


84 


Fundamentals of Success 


and growing organisms as with inorganic 
factors and forces. But the results of certain 
combinations in the plant world can be 
forecast with reasonable exactness. 

In the animal kingdom the law of heredity 
likewise holds true. Every animal produces 
its own kind. Like begets like. The charac¬ 
teristics of the male and female are trans¬ 
mitted from generation to generation with 
remarkable certainty. Breeders of good 
stock have appreciated this law and by care¬ 
ful selection are able to secure desired results. 
By cross breeding rare combinations have 
been secured—some of them of great com¬ 
mercial value. The laws of heredity have 
been fully demonstrated, and the exact charac¬ 
ter of certain combinations can be foretold. 
The laws of heredity among plants and ani¬ 
mals are known now among scientists almost 
as well as the laws of light and sound. 

In the animal kingdom we believe in 
blood. We prize highly the fine blood of the 
well-bred horse or the fine strain in the 
Jersey cow. Even with chickens, cats, and 
dogs we look with favor on those with pure 
blood. We appreciate the inherited qualities 
and expect to find the same virtues as are 


Heredity 


85 


found in their ancestors. Not only do we 
look for the same physical traits, but also the 
same temperaments and other mental quali¬ 
ties. A vicious horse would not be expected 
of Norman blood nor a cowardly dog from 
an English bull sire. A fighting disposition 
goes with a game fowl, but not with the 
Plymouth Rock. Instincts and tempera¬ 
ments are evidently inherited among animals. 

The law of heredity holds true in the genus 
homo —he is no exception. So far as can be 
observed, he lives under the same hereditary 
laws that govern the plant and brute world. 
Children are very much like their parents. 

Man’s physical inheritance is without 
question. He inherits race characteristics. 
You do not expect the face, figure, and char¬ 
acteristics of a pure Caucasian to be born 
from a pure Mongolian family. The Mon¬ 
golian with unerring certainty produces the 
Mongolian type, and so it is with all other 
races. 

In any particular race the stature of the 
man, as well as his hair, the color of his eyes, 
and the shape of his head and hands, is a 
matter of inheritance. A strong man and a 
strong woman produce strong children. 


86 Fundamentals of Success 

When the ancestors live the allotted three¬ 
score and ten years, the children under nor¬ 
mal conditions shall live also to a ripe old 
age. Life insurance societies take note of this 
fact and govern themselves accordingly. 
Baldness, obesity, fecundity, and many 
other peculiarities are handed down from 
generation to generation. Facial features 
are transmitted and family resemblance be¬ 
comes well known—a nose, chin, eyes, or a 
mouth may be a family characteristic. 
Often the son closely resembles the father, 
and sometimes the father rejoices in the re¬ 
semblance and prides himself that the son 
is “a fine fellow—just like his father,” and 
“a chip off the old block.” 

When the last little one came into my 
home, well do I remember that before it was 
three weeks old the good women visiting 
would look carefully at the newcomer nes¬ 
tled in the cradle, look at the father, and then 
say to the mother, “Well, it is the living 
image of its father.” However inconsistent, 
the next remark usually was: “Isn’t it a 
beautiful baby?” This fact is hard to ex¬ 
plain, of course, but it remains true. Beauti¬ 
ful or homely, the child was the very image 


Heredity 


87 


of the father—at least as much as a small 
piece of humanity in the form of a baby 
could be like a full-grown man. 

Francis Galton has by careful investiga¬ 
tion among people and many experiments 
among animals worked out what he believed 
to be the law of ancestral inheritance. He 
states it in this way: “The two parents con¬ 
tribute between them on the average one- 
half of each inherited faculty, each of them 
contributing one-quarter of it. The four 
grandparents contribute between them one 
quarter, or each of them one sixteenth; and 
so on, the sum of the series ^ 2 +^+1-8+ 
1-16, etc., being equal to one, as it should 
be.” The average of each contribution is thus 
stated definitely, the contribution diminish¬ 
ing with the remoteness of the ancestor. 
Theoretically the number of ancestors 
doubles with each ascending generation. 
But in fact cousins of varying degrees 
have intermarried, and we have not the 
theoretical number of ancestors. Never¬ 
theless each individual human being has 
in him the currents and countercurrents 
of thousands of ancestors. The sum of 
all these compound your heredity. Your 


88 Fundamentals of Success 

stature, weight, color, hair, eyes, facial 
contour, size of skull, length of fingers—- 
your entire physical being has been a gift 
from multiplied forbears. The country in 
which you live and the age in which you 
were born and the race from which you 
spring are all gifts from those going before. 
You have not been consulted about any of 
them, but must accept all as a gracious (or 
ungracious) gift and make the best of the 
situation. 

But this is not all of heredity. The 
country, age, and physical man are only a 
part of your inheritance. You are mental 
and moral as well as physical. Your mental 
capacity and moral aptitudes have been 
presented by your ancestors. Your initial 
brain power, or mental capacity, is the re¬ 
sultant of a long line of forces preceding you. 
But this brain power, as we shall see later, 
can by your own action be dwarfed or de¬ 
veloped as you may choose. It appears 
evident that mental ability is transmitted. 
Mr. Karl Pearson says: “We are forced, I 
think literally forced, to the general con¬ 
clusion that the physical and psychical 
characters in a man are inherited within 


Heredity 


89 


broad lines in the same manner and with the 
same intensity.” Strong-minded parents 
are usually blessed with children of like 
qualities, while parents of weak minds 
impart their weakness to their progeny. 
Francis Galton, in “Hereditary Genius and 
English Men of Letters,” has clearly shown 
that mental ability is inherited. He shows 
that these illustrious men have sprung from 
parentage of unusual power and capacity. 
Some exceptions are to be found as might be 
expected. Sometimes a very unworthy son 
disgraces a noble father and again a brilliant 
boy springs from an unexpected quarter. 
These exceptions help to “prove the rule.” 

As intellectual strength may be inherited, 
so may intellectual weakness be trans¬ 
mitted from parent to child. Goddard has 
shown conclusively that epilepsy, insanity, 
and alcoholism run in certain families. 
These, he says, may possibly come from an 
unstable nervous organization. A genius 
sometimes comes from the same sort of 
conditions. He thus shows that Dryden s 
famous lines, 

“ Great wits are sure to madness near allied, 

And thin partitions do their bounds divide,” 


90 


Fundamentals of Success 


may have as much truth as poetry. From 
these unstable nervous organizations the 
results are not sure. From such parents an 
idiot may spring, or a genius, or a drunkard, 
or both, as it was in the case of Poe. 

Moral inclinations are also inherited. 
Mr. Pearson says: “Probity and ability may 
be fostered by home environment and good 
schools, but their origin, like health and 
muscle, lies deeper down. They are bred in 
the bone.” 

Moral fiber, it appears, is woven into the 
nature of man by the blood and bone of his 
ancestry. It is handed down from father to 
son as a part of the general inheritance. As 
the bulldog inherits his fierce and tenacious 
disposition and the hare the timid and re¬ 
tiring one, so a man inherits from his an¬ 
cestry a natural tendency to moral or im¬ 
moral conduct. This tendency, of course, 
may be augmented or restrained by the in¬ 
dividual in accordance with his own will. 
Ancestors may be charged with passing down 
the line an ugly disposition, but it is for each 
one to curb his own bad tendencies and culti¬ 
vate the better way. Do not blame your an¬ 
cestors for your conduct—only for your 


Heredity 


91 


tendency. You have an imperial will and 
can restrain your evil inclination or yield to 
it as you may choose. 

Thus from your ancestors you inherit the 
age in which you live, the race to which you 
belong, the size, health, and strength of your 
body, the color of your hair and eyes, the 
entire physical being, the brilliance or dull¬ 
ness of your mind, the moral or immoral 
tendency of your disposition—in fact, you 
inherit the foundation upon which you must 
build your character. These things are 
fundamental and exceedingly important. 
You must accept your inheritance with good 
humor, and by seeking superior environ¬ 
ment, a trained will, and divine grace make 
the most of your opportunity. In America 
but few are seriously handicapped. Those 
who have America for native land and have 
inherited this wonderful day for appearance 
on the stage of action and have health and 
average mental capacity may take heart. 
Yours is a goodly heritage—the lines have 
fallen to you in pleasant places. If you have 
no distinguished ancestors, start a new line. 
Distinguish your descendants. 


VI 

environment 

In the proper development of man the 
second fundamental factor is environment. 
While in physical form and natural capacity 
heredity plays the larger part, in. culture, 
acquirements, and moral sense environment 
seems to be stronger. Whether to prefer a 
noble birth with poor environments or a 
lowly birth with wholesome surroundings 
has been debated on numerous occasions. 
Some believe it better to be born with splen¬ 
did capacities and thrust afterwards into 
mean fellowship, while others think to be 
born with average ability and afterwards 
come into cultural and inspirational, atmos¬ 
phere is the more desirable. But since, we 
have no choice in the matter of heredity it is 
not worth while to discuss the subject here. 
While the intrinsic forces are very powerful, 
the extrinsic forces are likewise influential in 
the development of all organic life. 

The effect of environment on plant life is 
well known. In order to reach full fruitage 
the proper soil, cultivation, temperature, 
( 92 ) 


Environment 


93 


light, and moisture are essential. A grain of 
corn planted in the earth, it matters not how 
good the seed, cannot come to the “full corn 
in the ear” unless it has the proper environ¬ 
ment. If left uncultivated in the midst of 
tares, it will be of little value. The native 
force in the kernel is overcome in the strug¬ 
gle against the unwholesome surroundings. 
Though kept clear of the tares and denied 
the proper heat, light, and moisture, it can¬ 
not give its best yield. Only when the good 
grain falls into the good ground and the 
.proper environment is given in all particu¬ 
lars do we get the best results. 

Plant life may be advanced or retarded by 
its surroundings. By giving the proper en¬ 
vironment the rose may be hastened in its 
growth and improved in its beauty and fra¬ 
grance, or by a lack of this it may be re¬ 
tarded so that it does not reach its accus¬ 
tomed size and beauty. The gardener and 
the farmer know full well the necessity for 
the proper care of the growing plant and 
therefore cultivate diligently and pray ear¬ 
nestly for the “early and latter rain.” For 
if this is denied, the plants wither and fade. 
The fruit in the orchard, the grapes in the 


94 Fundamentals of Success 

vineyard, the wheat in the field, the whole 
plant world, must have the proper environ¬ 
ment in order to reach full fruitage. 

In the tropical region where good soil, 
heat, light, and moisture abound the plant 
world reaches its most luxuriant growth. 
But as you go northward plant life grows less 
and less luxuriant until eventually it fades 
out entirely in the frozen zones. 

In the plant world Mr. Burbank is ac¬ 
complishing wonders by affording proper 
environment and using fertilization. The 
plant responds to proper culture, and the im¬ 
provements can be passed on to succeeding 
generations. The delightful apples with 
toothsome flavor that come to us in winter 
have been developed from the wild crab. 
The delicious peaches that delight us in sum¬ 
mer have been developed from the wild 
Abyssinian peach. Our beautiful roses of 
all colors and varieties have been brought 
from the wild plant. Even the cauliflower 
is nothing but an “educated cabbage.” 
Proper culture can work wonders in the plant 
world, but without culture reversion is sure 
and disappointment certain. 

Animal life is affected by environment no 


Environment 


95 


less than plant life. Animals of all kinds 
respond to the proper surroundings and 
reach their normal growth, while if denied 
them they are dwarfed and fail of full 
maturity. While like begets like, proper 
surroundings are essential to the best results. 
The farmer knows that his colt, however well 
bred, cannot reach the highest standard un¬ 
less given the proper care. He knows that 
his pig can be dwarfed, or hastened in its 
growth, in accordance with the attention 
given it. Animal life everywhere, domestic 
or wild, is affected by its environment. 

Breeders know how to get the best results 
from blood and care. It is possible by proper 
selection and attention to get a permanent 
breed of horses, dogs, or cattle of any kind, 
in accordance with the will of man. The 
animal world responds to wholesome en¬ 
vironments. 

Chickens, ducks, geese, pigeons, and many 
other fowls have been domesticated and de¬ 
veloped to suit the taste of the breeder. 
Domesticated fowls, not using their wings so 
much in captivity, have almost forgotten 
how to fly, while they have learned better 
how to walk by the greater use of their legs. 


96 


Fundamentals of Success 


These turned back into their primitive state 
would soon revert to their former condition 
and habits. The faithful house dog, turned 
into the woods and denied the friendship and 
care of man, would in a few generations re¬ 
vert to the same state of his undomesticated 
kin. Jack Londons famous dog is not the 
only one that has heard the call of the wild. 
By the right sort of environment and proper 
training the dog has developed into one of 
the most useful and faithful friends of man. 
Many varieties with many different charac¬ 
teristics have resulted from careful selection 
and breeding. The same has proved true 
with the horse. The whole animal kingdom 
is responsive to proper training and sur¬ 
roundings ; some animals manifesting surpris¬ 
ing intelligence under the right sort of care. 

As plant life and brute life respond to en¬ 
vironment and show marked improvements 
when properly surrounded, so man likewise 
is influenced even in a more remarkable way. 
He responds more readily because of his 
greater capacity. He is influenced more 
easily because of his more delicate and sensi¬ 
tive nature and the greater range of pos¬ 
sibilities. 


Environment 


97 


Physically he is affected most seriously. 
Physical surroundings have affected his 
physical conditions. The color of his skin 
has been affected by the heat of the tropics, 
as is shown by the fact that dark-skinned 
people are found chiefly in the tropics and 
white in the temperate zones. Tropical 
heat has also affected him in other ways. 
Food being easily supplied without labor on 
account of abundant fruits of various kinds, 
there has been no necessity, and therefore no 
disposition to work in these tropical zones, 
and therefore men have become lazy and 
inert. The intense summer heat of even 
the southern part of the temperate zone has 
seriously affected the civilization of this part 
of the country. During the heat of the sum¬ 
mer energy seems to ooze out with the per¬ 
spiration and the whole mental and physical 
constitution is enervated. The great civili¬ 
zations of history have usually been pro¬ 
duced in the temperate zone where man finds 
his best physical environment. Climatic 
conditions evidently affect men in the most 
forceful way. The condition of the native 
bushmen of Australia, at the time of their 
discovery by civilized man, was most de- 
7 


98 


Fundamentals of Success 


plorable, due to the arid climate of the coun¬ 
try. Their struggle for life was fierce, as 
vegetation was scarce and they had. no 
domestic animals. The tundra of Russia is 
a vast frozen plains country inhabited by 
men of no culture and with few comforts. 
The climate is too cold for the proper com¬ 
fort of man. Man’s physical development is 
seriously affected by the soil, climate, and 
civilization that surround him. A great 
civilization grows up in the favored lands, 
and out of this great civilization our great 
men have come. The arts and sciences have 
been governed largely by physical environ¬ 
ment. 

I have sometimes wondered what would 
have been the history of the brilliant Caesar 
if at the age of two or three years he had been 
kidnaped and carried into the heart of 
Africa, where he would have wandered 
among black savages, a stranger to the name 
and fame of Rome. On account of his won¬ 
derful inherited ability no doubt he would 
have become chief of his tribe. Perhaps he 
would have conquered neighboring tribes 
and established a central empire with him¬ 
self supreme dictator of all known lands. 


Environment 


99 


But he could not have been the Caesar of 
Rome and the hero of so many Roman con¬ 
quests. Had Saul, the gifted son of Tarsus, 
been carried as a boy by some wandering 
band into the heart of Arabia, instead of 
being sent to the university of his own fair 
city, what would have been his career? On 
account of his commanding intellect he 
would perhaps have been the leader of some 
tribe and made for himself a place among 
his people, but he could not have been the 
great apostle to the Gentiles, who has done 
so much for the spread of the Christian faith 
over the earth. The very civilization in 
which we live wields a powerful influence 
over our lives and tells mightily upon our 
careers. It not only affects our physical 
form, but our mental development. Man is 
a creature of imitation. He grows up to do 
like the people who surround him. A child 
of cultured parentage taken into the camp of 
savages learns the habits of a savage, while 
the child of a savage brought into the home 
of culture and refinement does, in a large 
measure at least, adopt the customs and 
habits of civilization. So far as culture and 


100 Fundamentals of Success 

civilization go, environment seems to have 
larger influence than heredity. 

Association produces assimilation. We 
become like those with whom we associate. 
The child imitates the conduct of those about 
it and assumes their manners and customs. 
He accepts the ideas of his parents and 
grows up in their faith. The home of culture 
and refinement produces the child of culture 
and refinement, while the home of ignorance 
and rudeness sends forth the child of its own 
order. Men do not gather grapes from 
thorns nor figs from thistles. The atmos¬ 
phere of refinement breeds refinement in the 
children. It could not be otherwise. Crude¬ 
ness cannot produce culture any more than 
darkness can beget light. 

In our politics we are largely what our en¬ 
vironment has made us. Men are Demo¬ 
crats or Republicans in accordance with 
their surroundings. I am a Democrat be¬ 
cause my father was a Democrat before me 
and my training was of that stamp. Had he 
been a stalwart Republican and I trained in 
the Republican doctrine, in all probability I 
would have followed him in the same way. 
Most Republicans are such because of 


Environment 


101 


parental influence or from personal interests. 
Our political faith has been determined by 
our environments. 

Our religious faith has also been the result 
of the same influence. I became a Methodist 
very much like I became a Democrat. My 
mother was a Methodist of the purest type. 
Her life was saintly and her devotion to her 
Church undying. To me, a boy, it seemed 
there was no other Church like my mother’s 
and no other Church for me to join. In this 
decision I have rejoiced to this good day. 
Many a fine boy has joined the Baptist or 
some other Church in the same blessed way 
and has never had cause to regret it. 

The home has a marvelous influence in 
building human character. It furnishes 
the earliest environment, makes the first and 
most lasting impressions upon the childish 
mind. As the home, so is the child; as the 
child, so is the man; as the man, so is the 
state. How very important the home and its 
surroundings! It is the very foundation of 
our civilization. Whatever strikes at the 
home strikes at the very base of civilization. 
The home is the citadel of our republican 
form of government. The home determines 


102 


Fundamentals of Success 


not only the politics and the religion of the 
children, but it determines their educational 
and social advantages. From the homes 
where education is emphasized and the col¬ 
lege course discussed and held up as the 
proper and only thing for a young man to 
pursue, come the young men who fill our 
colleges and universities and who after a 
while fill our pulpits, give us medicine, run 
our banks, write our laws, and administer 
our government. From the homes where 
there are parents who believe in education 
have come the men of all time who have 
stood in the forefront and led the progress of 
the world. 

From the pious homes have come the re¬ 
ligious leaders and reformers of all ages. 
All the great religious heroes of the past have 
come out of homes where God was honored 
and his law regarded. Out of such homes 
came Jacob, Moses, Samuel, David, Daniel, 
Jeremiah, Paul, Luther, Wesley, and untold 
hosts of others. They grew up in a religious 
atmosphere. Their environment told mar¬ 
velously upon their lives and upon the his¬ 
tory of the world. Out of such homes will 
come the religious leaders of the future. 


Environment 


103 


The school also aids in furnishing the en¬ 
vironment for the youth of the land. For 
nine months of the year and for five hours 
each day the schoolroom is open to the chil¬ 
dren of America. These public schools fur¬ 
nish a large factor in determining the citizen¬ 
ship of the future. For one-third of their 
waking hours during the nine months the 
children are under the guidance of teachers 
who preside in these schoolrooms. Their 
minds are being constantly influenced and 
their characters formed. Their ideals are 
being fashioned and their habits fixed. The 
importance of the teacher can hardly be 
overestimated. To the pupil he is the ex¬ 
ample, inspiration, and guide. He exercises 
a controlling power in molding the life of the 
children and shaping the destiny of the 
nation. 

The most interesting question connected 
with education is the part played by the 
American college in our national life. The 
college has wrought wonders in the life of our 
country. From the college, in a large meas¬ 
ure, the student gets his education, culture, 
and religious faith. This work, of course, is 
started in the home, continued in the gram- 


104 Fundamentals of Success 

mar and high school, but gets its final form 
in the college. These college years, between 
sixteen and twenty-one, are the most im¬ 
portant years of life. This is the plastic 
period. In these days ideals are set, habits 
are formed, and the religious faith almost 
permanently decided. This is the danger 
zone. Safely passed, there need be but little 
fear of the future. In these all-important 
years much of life is practically determined. 
If by evil associates, or unwholesome en¬ 
vironments of any kind, the college boy is 
led astray, the damage is well-nigh fatal. 
If he is given the proper surroundings, the 
results are sometimes wonderful. 

I have seen the country boy with good 
blood in his veins and good brains in his 
cranium enter college. I have watched his 
ambling gait and crude manners, his clothes 
all awry, with sleeves too short and shoes and 
trousers not on speaking terms because they 
had never met. I have observed his evident 
embarrassment in the presence of college 
girls. I have watched his transformation 
into a swaggering sophomore, who seemed to 
think that on account of his prodigious 
learning the whole world would soon be 


Environment 


105 


bowing at his feet. I have watched him 
enter the junior class and by reaching out 
into the sciences and digging deeper into the 
languages discover that there were many 
things not dreamed of in his former philoso¬ 
phy. I have seen the look of the serious 
student come into his face and the marks of a 
gentleman adorn his presence. As he en¬ 
tered well into the senior class I have ob¬ 
served the look of humility caused by the 
consciousness of his own ignorance, when he 
seemed to think that he was but a “child 
on the seashore picking stray pebbles while 
the whole ocean of knowledge was before 
him unexplored.” I have seen him come 
upon the platform on commencement day 
perfectly attired, with the lines of the 
student in his face and the marks of a gentle¬ 
man in every movement. He is a polished 
shaft ready and going forth to do his part of 
the world’s work. In a few years we hear of 
him in some neighboring city as the leading 
attorney at the bar, or with his medicine case 
at the bedside of some sick man, where by 
his knowledge and skill he holds Death him¬ 
self at bay and drives the dread monster 
back to bring his friend again into the walks 


106 Fundamentals of Success 

of health and happiness. Or perhaps we 
hear from him in the pulpit pleading with 
persuasive eloquence for men to forsake the 
way of death and to walk in the King’s 
highway of righteousness, or at the head of 
some great institution of learning advancing 
the ideals of civilization, or the president of 
some bank or corporation, or on some farm 
making two ears of corn grow where only one 
grew before. What made possible this 
noble order of manhood from the rude coun¬ 
try boy? It was the wholesome environ¬ 
ment of the college course. 

There are hundreds of young men and 
women now all over the country who have 
splendid possibilities locked up in their 
personalities, but who for lack of inspirational 
environment come to naught. 

“Full many a gem of purest ray serene 

The dark unfathom’d caves of ocean bear; 

Full many a flower is born to blush unseen, 

And waste its sweetness on the desert air.” 

Young man, seek such environment. Do 
not delay; do not wait for the convenient 
season; it may never come. Force the issue. 
There is wholesome environment for you; if 
you have it not at present, seek it at once. 


VII 

THE WILL 

When we consider the powerful force of 
heredity and the wonderful influence 
wrought by environment, we are almost 
persuaded to believe that in the making of a 
man there is not much left to be done by 
other factors. It appears from a cursory 
study that good heredity and good environ¬ 
ment working together ought always to get 
the proper results. But this is not always 
true. It sometimes happens that a young 
man inherits good blood and brains, is given 
the best possible environment, and yet 
comes to nothing. Opportunities abound, and 
yet he fails to accomplish his part in life’s 
great drama. For some reason he does not 
respond to the situation and utterly fails 
when he ought to succeed. The fault cannot 
be in his birthright. He has good capacity, 
but deliberately refuses to use his capacity. 
It cannot be in his environment. His 
brothers have the same environment, and 
they succeed. Why does he fail? It may be 
entirely his own fault. 


( 107 ) 


108 Fundamentals of Success 

There is a factor entering into the making 
of a man that is a very subtle yet very pow¬ 
erful force. It is sometimes called “the 
personal equation,” but I prefer to call it the 
will. It is absolutely essential in the de¬ 
velopment of a strong character. Without a 
strong will there can be no strong man. It 
takes a strong character to battle successful¬ 
ly in the great conflict of life. By the will I 
mean that self-assertiveness, that strong 
determination that resists opposition and 
overcomes difficulties of all kinds. It is that 
psychical activity that the individual brings 
to bear upon events to modify them to suit 
his own desires. It necessitates clear think¬ 
ing and strong convictions. When this 
strong will is found in any individual you 
may expect something done. Where there 
is no strong will there will be no strong man 
and no unusual accomplishments. 

Just how much this will depends upon 
heredity and how much upon environment 
would be hard to determine. The ancestors 
of Napoleon were not famous for strong wills, 
and yet it was before the power of his mighty 
will that empires were swept out of being and 
new thrones established. His imperial will 


The Will 


109 


was the secret of his wonderful power. No 
man could stand against it. However the 
will may come—whether by heredity or by 
surrounding circumstances, or whether by 
some strange personal equation—it is essen¬ 
tial to the highest success. 

The plant has no will. It cannot decide 
anything. It has no choice of events. It 
cannot resist or change the course of events; 
it is entirely passive. It cannot seek or avoid 
sunshine or rain. It cannot go to more suit¬ 
able surroundings. It cannot change its en¬ 
vironment. Where it comes into being, 
there it must abide to the end of its day. 
It has no intelligence, no will, no choice, no 
locomotion. Animal life of the lower order 
has but little more advantage. Animals of 
the higher order can seek shelter and pro¬ 
tection, or go into another field to search for 
food. But they form no concepts, they do 
not reason, they make no conscious choice 
between actions. They act not from reason, 
but are impelled by blind instinct. They 
have no conscious self-existence. 

Man is the only creature who has this 
imperial power of will developed and can 
exercise his choice. He alone reasons ac- 


110 Fundamentals of Success 

curately and makes conscious and accurate 
selection of which course he will. pursue. 
He alone can consciously choose with clear 
judgment to seek a better environment. 
Abraham can get up out of Chaldea and go 
into another country in search of better 
things. Moses can refuse to be called the 
son of Pharaoh’s daughter and choose to 
suffer affliction with the people of God 
rather than enjoy the pleasure of sin for a 
season. Man is the one creature who can in 
large measure throttle his own heredity, rise 
out of unwholesome surroundings, and seek 
a better clime. By force of his will he is in a 
large measure the master of his own destiny. 
By this imperial gift he can rise above un¬ 
desirable environments and find a new 
situation more to his liking. _ While he can¬ 
not change his color or racial instincts, he 
can change his location, his habits, and im¬ 
prove his situation. Andrew Carnegie could 
leave Scotland for America, seeking a better 
opportunity for the acquirement of wealth. 
Jacob Riis could leave Denmark for the 
United States to become, according to Mr. 
Roosevelt, the “most useful citizen” in our 
country. The immigrant has the power to 


The Will 


111 


choose a new country and seek better en¬ 
vironment for himself and family. By this 
power man becomes in part the architect of 
his own fate. 

“There’s a divinity that shapes our ends, 
Rough-hew them how we will.” 

There are some things we cannot alter by 
force of will, but there are many that we can 
change. We are not consulted about what 
country we would like for our fatherland; 
but if we did not get one that suits us, we can 
adopt one of our own choosing. 

We were not asked whether we would like 
the gift of one, two, or five talents, but it is 
for us to choose whether we will be “good 
and faithful servants” or “wicked and 
slothful.” Whether we have one or five 
talents, if we do the best we can angels can 
do no more. The same commendation was 
given all who were “good and faithful.” 
We were not asked whether we would prefer 
to be born rich or poor, but it is for us to 
decide whether we will continue rich or seek 
riches. The rich may become poor and the 
poor rich partly by choosing their own 
course. We were not asked whether we 
preferred to be born of humble or of dis- 


112 Fundamentals of Success 

tinguished parents. But we may disgrace a 
noble birth, or perhaps distinguish a humble 
ancestry by our own actions. 

The parents cannot do all. Noble birth 
and cultured surroundings can do much, but 
they cannot do all. Parents cannot carve 
out a destiny for their children, else many 
who have been failures would have suc¬ 
ceeded. Every man’s destiny is largely in 
his own hands. Every man is in some 
measure the architect of his own fortune. 
You can be aided by your parents—a boost 
is sometimes very essential—but finally it is 
for you to stand or fall by your own will. 
Many sons, born of excellent parentage, 
have failed for lack of this will. They have 
had everything ready at hand; they have had 
to force nothing. Everything desired was 
ready-made and in easy reach. The will was 
not developed. It was necessary to do 
nothing by force of will. Every wish was 
granted. The will was weakened and the 
force of character undeveloped. They be¬ 
came mollycoddles, without will and force. 
For this reason The sons of many rich men do 
not accomplish much. This is a world of 
fierce conflict and strong competition. The 


The Will 113 

man who succeeds must have a will of iron 
to stand against the pressure. 

For this reason the boy born rich and witlT 
no difficulties to overcome in his growing 
period does not develop the will. The man 
who succeeds in this world must endure 
hardness. Attending week-end house 
parties, box parties at the theater, being 
driven by the chauffeur for afternoon rides 
with the ladies, and having money to meet 
every demand do not encourage a young 
fellow to “endure hardness.” It is softness 
that this sort of life produces, and softness 
cannot win in a hard world like ours. The 
man who has the will to endure hardships is 
the man who makes his way. 

The most compelling need to-day among 
our young people is will power. There are 
many who have an inheritance of blood and 
brain and an environment that ought to 
produce the noblest sort of men, but they 
lack will. They have no disposition to push; 
they seek “a pull.” It is the “push” they 
need to develop—the “pull ” will take care of 
itself. There are thousands of young fellows 
all over the country who have the native 
capacity and the training for splendid 
8 


114 


Fundamentals of Success 


careers, but they lack will power. They 
need that determination that knows no 
failure. They need to set their heads, 
hearts, and jaws on the accomplishment of 
the task in hand. Success or failure is fre¬ 
quently determined at this point. By sheer 
force of will many apparently impossible 


thing shave been accomplished with readiness 


and ease. 

The unconquerable will that laughs at the 
impossible and says “It shall be done is 
the one need of to-day. A steady determina¬ 
tion that keeps constantly at the task until 
it is accomplished is necessary. To will one 
thing to-day and something else to-morrow 
means failure. But the man who determines 
fully to do one thing and keeps at that one 
thing will likely succeed. Wendell Phillips 
set his heart on freeing the slaves of America. 
It was a great task. It is said that a certain 
little woman set her head and heart on this 
task, but for a while found no way to do it. 
Phillips fell in love with her and sought her 
hand in marriage. She consented upon his 
promise to help her free the slaves. Year 
after year he kept up the struggle until his 
purpose was accomplished in the midst of 


The Will 


115 


blood and tears. But the result nobody 
questions now. The great conviction and 
the great will to do the one thing finally 
achieved the victory. 

In a smaller way many important things 
have been done. One man or one woman has 
often willed a certain thing—something that 
at first seemed impossible and entirely out of 
reason—and by constant force of the will 
intelligently directed the accomplishment of 
that certain thing has been realized. Some¬ 
times a boy has set his heart on a college 
education when it seemed entirely beyond 
his reach. But by an unwavering determina¬ 
tion that ambition has been realized and a 
noble man given to the world. 

When the Civil War swept over the South 
many homes were devastated and the spirit 
of many men so broken that they never 
rallied, but died in grief with broken hearts. 
But down in Tennessee in a certain home 
destroyed by war was born a son whose spirit 
could not be broken and whose will could 
not be daunted by discouragement. When 
reaching seventeen years of age he saw the 
inability of his father to give him an educa¬ 
tion and asked permission to go out into the 


116 Fundamentals of Success 

world to make his own way. The permis¬ 
sion was granted, and he left with parental 
blessings. He hired himself out to a well-to- 
do farmer who, having no children of his 
own, took much interest in him. The winter 
evenings were frequently passed by reading* 
biography to the young farm hand who could 
hardly read for himself. When the farmer 
would read of Greeley and Franklin in their 
struggles with poverty and how they at¬ 
tained greatness, and how Lincoln had come 
from the farm to the White House, some¬ 
thing in the heart of the boy continually 
said: “George, you can be a man too; you 
must do it.” George then and there set his 
heart on being a real man. The next winter 
he arranged with the old farmer to do the 
chores about the place for his board while 
attending school at the old log schoolhouse 
not far away. George was eighteen years of 
age, wore homespun clothes, brogan shoes, 
and a “ hickory” shirt, and was in the 
fourth reader. When “turned down” by a 
smaller boy he would always say to himself: 
“You can do that to-day, but you cannot do 
it always; I’ll get ahead of you one of these 
days. ’ ’ As the days passed by his determina - 


The Will 


117 


tion grew stronger. On Friday afternoon 
there were speeches by the boys. Hearing 
the orations of others stirred the spirit of the 
orator in George’s bosom. But the teacher 
never called on him for a speech. One 
Friday when the boys had done unusally well 
and the fires of the orator were burning 
brightly in his bones, at the close of school 
he asked privately the privilege of saying a 
speech. The privilege was granted. In an 
old book he found the famous address to the 
Romans which begins, “I come not here to 
talk; you know too well the story of our 
thralldom,” etc. The next Friday,he was 
told in the morning to be ready for the 
“speaking” at three. At once he began to 
grow nervous. By noon he had lost his ap¬ 
petite and could eat no lunch. By three his 
mouth was so dry that he could “spit cot¬ 
ton.” When called upon he was ready to 
faint with fear, but marched to the platform 
and bowed. He began: “I come not here to 
talk.” In his fright the second line of his 
speech escaped him, and then every line ex¬ 
cept the first was gone. Hoping to “bring 
up” the second line he repeated the first, but 
the second line would not come. For the 


118 


Fundamentals of Success 


third time he said, u I come not here to talk, 
but the next line could not be recalled. He 
was so determined to succeed that he stepped 
back to the wall and walked forward again, 
bowed the second time, thinking that might 
help in recalling the second fleeting line. 
For the fourth time he said, “ I come not here 
to talk,” but still the second line would not 
come, though perspiration did. Thinking he 
might twist that second line out of the 
corner of his homespun coat tail, he gave it a 
vigorous twist and for the fifth time said: 
“ I come not here to talk.” His schoolmates 
were so convulsed with laughter that he 
finally gave it up and bowed himself off the 
platform. As he passed the teacher said: 
"George, you certainly did tell us the truth.” 
George sat down in confusion and shame, but 
without discouragement. Following his un¬ 
wavering determination he learned the art of 
public speaking and graduated with honors 
from one of the leading colleges of Virginia, 
working his way from beginning to end and 
winning honors as a student and orator. 
For years he was a brilliant pastor and after¬ 
wards became the associate of Sam Jones in 
his great evangelistic tours. George Stuart 


The Will 


119 


became one of the most successful pastors of 
the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, and 
one of the highest paid lecturers on the 
American platform. He declined an offer of 
twenty thousand dollars for two hundred 
lectures. His first effort in tl I come not here 
to talk” could not be counted very success¬ 
ful. His unconquerable will was the secret 
of his extraordinary career. His beginning 
was most unpromising. His strong deter¬ 
mination was the one most favorable factor. 
A weak will would have lost the fight. A 
strong will brought victory out of defeat. 

The strong will that knows no failure is the 
need of many to-day. There are many 
young men who have in them the possibili¬ 
ties of making diamonds of the first water. 
They need only the strong will. They have 
the possibilities of intellectual or moral 
heroism of the first order. Our crying need 
is force of will. I call upon you to arise 
in the majesty of your manhood, assert your 
will, gather up your strength, gird up your 
loins; be not like dumb, driven cattle, but be 
heroes in the conflict. I would be a man, a 
real manly man, or I would die in the ef¬ 
fort. 


VIII 

DIVINE GRACE 

The fourth and last fundamental factor in 
the making of a man is the element of 
divine grace. It is the unmerited favor of 
God toward the individual that brings salva¬ 
tion from sin and brings the virtues that 
adorn the Christian life. Paul writing to 
Titus says: “The grace of God that bringeth 
salvation unto all men hath appeared. 
This grace coming into the human heart 
brings reformation of conduct, transforma¬ 
tion of character, and regeneration of the 
heart. Old things pass away, and all things 
become new. The heart is so renewed that 
the things once loved are now hated and the 
things once hated are now loved. A new 
nature is made inwardly. New motives are 
born, new purposes formed, and a new life 
started. 

Just how this miracle of grace is wrought 
in the human heart and life no man can ex¬ 
plain. Jesus the Christ himself said: “The 
wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou 
hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell 
( 120 ) 


Divine Grace 


121 


whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is 
every one that is born of the Spirit.” We 
know that we come into a new spiritual 
realm and a new life is in the soul, but we 
cannot explain the method of procedure. 

Divine grace works wonders. It can over¬ 
come inherited infirmities, transform en¬ 
vironments, and strengthen weak wills. It 
can remove a man from the associations of 
vice into the fellowship of the people of God. 
It can take away his sinful nature and give 
him a state of grace; remove the heart of 
stone and give the heart of flesh. It can take 
a man from a drunkard’s home and make of 
him a famous evangelist. It can take a hope¬ 
less wreck from the lowest depth of sin and 
transform him into a great mission worker in 
New York City, and through a Jerry 
McAuley lead thousands of others into the 
nobler life. It can take a drunken wreck and 
make of him a John B. Gough, the most 
eloquent advocate of temperance the world 
has ever known. It can reach its arms into 
a gypsy tent and so transform a wandering, 
ignorant gypsy boy that he becomes a 
Gypsy Smith, the most remarkable evan¬ 
gelist of his country, who preaches like a 


122 


Fundamentals of Success 


prophet, sings like a seraph, and who has 
turned thousands of the most cultured of the 
land into the kingdom of God. 

No life is complete without this grace. It 
matters not what may be inherited from 
noble ancestry, nor what cultural environ¬ 
ments one may enjoy, nor how forceful the 
will, the human life is not complete without 
the saving grace of God in the soul and the 
virtues of that grace manifested in the life. 
In the light of eternity this is the most im¬ 
portant of all factors. Without it all the 
others ultimately fail. It is the keystone to 
the arch of success. It prepares him not only 
for the noblest life in this world, but for 
supreme bliss in the life beyond. It brings 
out the strength and beauty of man. It 
gives significance to his whole being. It 
lends value to his actions and explains his 
existence. Without divine grace no life can 
reach its noblest possibilities or richest joys. 
The human soul finds its highest aspirations 
in God. As the wing was made for the air, 
so man was made for God and finds his 
richest joys in him. 

It matters little how large the name be 
written in the records of men, if it is not 


Divine Grace 


123 


written in the “Book of Life” it is all to no 
purpose. It matters not how much wealth 
may be obtained, if the “true riches” be not 
secured all eternity shall be filled with 
poverty. It is better to be a Lazarus in the 
“bosom of Abraham” than to be a Dives in 
torments. It matters not how much knowl¬ 
edge may be acquired, if the true knowledge 
of God be not found all is to no purpose. 
However deeply one may drink of the 
Pierian spring, if he never drinks of the 
fountain of eternal life all is of no avail. It 
is better to learn the alphabet in heaven than 
to read Greek in the regions of the lost. 

Without God and his grace this life is a 
dark enigma. It has no satisfactory ex¬ 
planation. A thousand questions are with¬ 
out answer, the universe without a just 
cause, and human life filled with hidden 
mysteries. Darkness, doubt, and uncer¬ 
tainty prevail and the great future unknown 
and unknowable. Without God and his 
grace difficulties insurmountable arise every¬ 
where and man must live in the midst of 
perplexities and die in uncertainty. There 
is no sure foundation for anything, no rest 
for the weary mind, no comfort for the heavy 


124 Fundamentals of Success 

heart, no solace for the sorrowing soul. 
Without God all is a solar system without 
the sun. All is darkness and eternal night, 
and death reigns supreme. 

With God and his grace light shines in 
splendor, the night is dispelled, and the 
glowing warmth of the sun is felt every¬ 
where. Life is filled with joy and gladness. 
A sure foundation is given, the riddle of the 
universe made easier, and human life filled 
with light, hope, and boundless possibilities. 


IX 

THE ULTIMATE AIM 

Every intelligent act has some definite 
object in view. Brutes act from instinct, 
not knowing why nor for what purpose they 
move. But every intelligent action on the 
part of man is prompted by some specific 
purpose. The farmer sows his wheat in 
order to reap the harvest. He labors for the 
abundant harvest, hoping to secure comforts 
for himself and family and to lay by store for 
the rainy day. When the physician is called 
it is for a specific purpose. When he ad¬ 
ministers medicine it is for a definite aim. 
In all our doings we have some motive in 
view. 

Every well-ordered life has some ultimate 
aim, some great controlling purpose that 
guides and inspires the whole course of 
conduct. The great Galilean said: “ For this 
cause came I into the world.” He was on a 
definite mission, he had come for a specific 
purpose, and at the close of his life in talking 
with the Father he said: “I have finished the 
work which thou gavest me to do.” Every 

(125) 


126 


Fundamentals of Success 


man ought to have some definite goal, some 
specific purpose worthy of his best efforts. 
Some definite controlling motive is essential 
in order to accomplish anything worth while. 
Without this definite object in view a man’s 
life cannot have the proper significance nor 
reach the highest efficiency. The man who 
drifts aimlessly with the current cannot hope 
to reach any definite port. There may be 
many secondary objects in view, some of 
them of more or less importance, but there 
ought to be some great ultimate aim that 
serves as the guiding star, in accordance with 
which all minor details are adjusted. 

This ultimate aim is of supreme im¬ 
portance. If it be high and noble, the whole 
tenor of life will be lifted to a high and noble 
plane. If it be mediocre, life will be lived on 
that level. If it be low and base, the life will 
be lowered to meet the demands of such a 
motive. This ultimate aim gives tone and 
character to all conduct. It is therefore es¬ 
sential that the proper aim be definitely 
fixed in the mind. 

The view that one has of life has much to 
do in determining what this aim shall be. 
There are two distinct ways of viewing life. 


The Ultimate Aim 


127 


There are many varying shades of these 
views, but the two chief viewpoints may be 
briefly stated. 

The first may be expressed in the language 
of the disappointed old cynic when he cries 
out: “Vanity of vanities, saith the preacher, 
all is vanity.” He had tried a world of vain 
show and found that all was vanity and 
nothing more. He had missed the mark en¬ 
tirely. From the same viewpoint Lord By¬ 
ron wrote: “Life sparkles only at the brim.” 
To him life was a “cup to be drained,” 
when in reality it is “a measure to be 
filled.” He had reversed the true order, and 
for this reason his cup was filled with dregs. 
It had a brief sparkle occasionally, but that 
sparkle was only “at the brim”—the rest 
was tasteless and uninteresting. It is again 
voiced in the utterance of Jacques, when 
Shakespeare makes him to say: 

“All the world’s a stage, 

And all the men and women merely players.’’ 

To him nothing was in real earnest. All was 
but mere acting a part. All are on a stage 
acting in the presence of others, seeking their 
applause and knowing that the curtain will 


128 Fundamentals of Success 

soon fall forever and the players be no more. 
These all mean to say that life is a great, 
hollow sham with nothing real and satisfying 
to be found. They believe that life has more 
sorrow than joy, more pain than pleasure, 
more shadow than sunshine. They believe 
that more com is blighted than garnered, 
more vines are barren than full of clusters, 
that man should curse the day of his birth 
and never lead the maiden to the altar of 
marriage. They believe that life is not worth 
living and it would have been better not to 
be born. They have had the wrong view¬ 
point. They have missed the real sweetness 
and joy of living. They have had no great 
vision that has lifted life above the mere 
round of daily routine. They missed the 
better way and were lost in the swamps, 
following some uncertain will-o’-the-wisp. 

The other and better view of life is ex¬ 
pressed in the noble lines from Longfellow. 

“Life is real! life is earnest! 

And the grave is not its goal; 

Dust thou art, to dust returnest, 

Was not spoken of the soul.” 

This view dignifies and ennobles life. It 
carries it infinitely beyond the grave and 


The Ultimate Aim 


129 


gives immortal significance to every deed. 
It fills life with joy and hope and robs the 
grave of its terror. It dispels the dampness 
and gloom of cold cynicism, sheds the warm 
rays of a glorious light over the mysteries of 
life, and spans the tomb with the rainbow 
of eternal hope. It brings inspiration and 
courage to the living, resignation and hope 
to the dying. With this view of life a noble 
ultimate aim is easy to determine and 
glorious to execute. With the wrong view¬ 
point many have missed the mark entirely 
and found life full of disappointments and 
sorrows. 

From the false viewpoint some regard life 
as an opportunity to “have a good time” in 
gratifying the physical and intellectual ap¬ 
petites. They say: “Let us eat, drink, and 
be merry, for to-morrow we die.” Their sole 
object of search is the personal gratification 
of the temporal wants. They seek only that 
which will interest, amuse, and please. Like 
the heedless butterfly, they flit from one 
scene to another in search of fleeting joys. 
With them there is no serious side of life. 
They seek only that which will satisfy for 
the time. They have no great ulterior mo- 

( 9 ) 


130 Fundamentals of Success 

tive to inspire noble deeds. Like profane 
Esau, they sell life’s noblest birthright for a 
mess of pottage, and a small one at that. 

That man was intended for a life of real 
happiness I have no doubt. The Supreme 
Architect of the universe has designed the 
happiness of all men. He has filled the earth 
with innumerable blessings, making liberal 
provision for all our needs. He has prepared 
the world as no place was ever prepared for 
king or queen. He has filled our cups to 
overflowing with goodness and mercy and 
has omitted nothing that would bring pleas¬ 
ure to His children. In holy writ we are 
many times commanded to “rejoice and be 
glad.” But sin has entered and marred the 
beauty of the world and destroyed the hap¬ 
piness of many. But happiness is possible 
for all. God deals in justice and love. The 
children of apparent fortune must suffer and 
lose the same as those in humbler walks. 
The instinct for happiness is deeply im¬ 
bedded in man’s nature. He has planted in 
our hearts the desire for happiness and de¬ 
lights in seeing it realized in our lives. 

All men desire happiness, and most men 
are in earnest search for it. Can happiness 


The Ultimate Aim 


131 


then be the ultimate aim of a noble life? 
Shall the quest for happiness be the final 
goal? It is our privilege to be happy. It is 
our duty to make others happy. The man 
with a sour disposition and a long face, who 
by his very presence rebukes a smile and 
spreads a cloud, is to be avoided as a conta¬ 
gious disease. But he who laughs well and 
brings sunshine and joy is to be welcomed 
like the April shower. The ring of a merry 
laugh is like the ring of sweet-toned bells. 
It starts the ringing of beautiful chimes in 
the hearts of others. 

But to seek personal happiness as the final 
goal of life is to miss the mark. Blessed is 
the man who is happy in his work. Let him 
thank God and rejoice in his day. Let him 
confer it upon others as far as he can. But 
let no one think happiness the final goal, the 
ultimate aim. It is desirable. “What ripe¬ 
ness is to the orange, what sweet song is to 
the lark, that happiness is to man.” It may 
be found, but not in the mere gratification 
of physical or mental appetites. It comes 
in the adjustment of conduct to principles. 
It comes as a by-product when one has the 
proper ultimate aim in life. Pleasure sought 


132 


Fundamentals of Success 


as such is rarely found. It is like trying to 
chase the rainbow to its resting place. As 
you approach it recedes; it can never be 
overtaken by chasing. To seek personal 
happiness directly is a vain search. 

Some have regarded life as an opportunity 
to achieve honor for honor’s sake. Men of 
parts have regarded this as the one object 
worthy of quest. They have considered this 
the ultimate aim in life, the final goal to be 
achieved. They have dreamed of their 
names written in large letters on the page of 
history. Some who have been called great 
have been willing to ride through rivers of 
human blood in order to inscribe their 
names among the heroes of the world. 
Glory among men has been their final goal. 
They seek the acclaim of the multitude; they 
seek their happiness in the esteem of others. 
Ruskin justly complains that many men 
seek place only that they may be seen of men 
to hold high position. They desire office, not 
that they may serve others, but that they 
may have the honor of others. They do not 
seek the place because they think they can 
serve better than others, but that they may be 
seen in higher place than others. Such an 


The Ultimate Aim 


133 


ambition is unworthy. To seek honor for 
honor’s sake, or as an ultimate aim, is not 
compatible with the noblest life. 

There are still others of a noble kind who 
miss the mark by seeking knowledge as the 
final goal. They regard life as a time for 
acquiring knowledge and personal culture as 
the ultimate aim. The brilliant German 
poet, Goethe, was of this opinion and taught 
that personal culture was the chief object to 
be sought in life. With these knowledge is 
gained simply as an end for personal gratifi¬ 
cation. They hold that knowing is in itself 
a satisfactory end in life. They worship at 
the shrine of knowledge and culture. They 
drink constantly at the “Pierian spring,” 
but are never fully satisfied. Knowledge and 
culture are to be held in high esteem, but not 
as the final goal of life. They are great 
secondary aims, but never meant for the 
primary object in a noble life. 

Most Americans, however, look on life as 
a golden opportunity for the acquirement of 
wealth. This they regard as the one great 
aim and object in life, and upon the ac¬ 
complishment of this they set their hearts. 
It is the chief game among Americans, Men 


134 Fundamentals of Success 

everywhere are in mad pursuit of the al¬ 
mighty dollar.” From early morning until 
dewy evening they continue the mad rush, 
each trying with all his might to surpass his 
neighbor in the chase. The god of Mammon 
is popular, and at his shrine the multitudes 
bow. His praises they sing; his favor they 
seek. Their chief joy, they believe, is in 
possession. In mad haste they jostle and 
push and crowd and shriek in the hot 
pursuit of gain. They can never be satisfied. 
Their neighbors are ever gathering more, 
and they must not be beaten in the game. 

In America many estimate a man’s worth 
by the length of his purse strings. Ask your 
friend how much any certain man is worth 
in his city or county, and the answer will 
come in terms of money: “He is worth so 
many thousands or millions of dollars.” 
He does not tell you that he is the most 
valuable man in the county or State, but 
tells you how much money he controls. 
When a man dies and a stranger asks what 
he left his family, the answer is invariably 
returned in the amount of property left 
behind. It is never said that he left the no¬ 
blest example and the best name for his 


The Ultimate Aim 


135 


family, but the property left seems to be 
the chief consideration. The heritage left 
is measured in cold commercial values. 

When a young woman marries and her 
friends who do not know the groom inquire 
as to what kind of alliance the bride has 
made, the commercial values are frequently 
applied. It is not said that she has married 
the cleanest, brainiest, and most promising 
young man of his city, but usually the answer 
deals in the financial values. His character 
and ability are not often considered, but his 
commercial rating is always taken into ac¬ 
count. Sometimes an answer is given after 
this order: “Yes, she has done beautifully. 
She has married fifty thousand dollars in 
bank stock, three large brick buildings on a 
good street, twenty thousand acres of land, 
and a whole herd of cattle/’ And some¬ 
times this is about the extent of the bargain. 
There is no real man in the transaction. 
“A man’s life consisteth not in the abun¬ 
dance of the things which he possesseth.” 
Life is not in meat and drink, but in higher 
and nobler things. 

To accumulate wealth in an honorable way 
is commendable, if used to the right end. 


136 Fundamentals of Success 

As a means to a higher end wealth may be 
lawfully sought, but never as the ultimate 
aim in life. Wealth is desirable; it means 
power; it can be made a great factor for 
good or evil. It can be used for the noblest 
purposes, but it should not be sought as the 
final goal. 

Life is not a golden opportunity for seeking 
wealth for wealth’s sake, nor acquiring 
knowledge as the ultimate aim, nor for the 
quest of happiness as the final goal. There 
is an ultimate aim higher than any of these. 
Life is more than wealth, or honor, or knowl¬ 
edge, or happiness. Life is not a time simply 
to pile up a fortune, or win fame, or acquire 
knowledge, or to laugh in joyous gladness as 
the final end. Life is a glorious opportunity 
to honor God in doing all possible good to our 
fellow man. The key word of this age is 
service. The noblest life is the life of 
service. The ultimate aim of the noblest 
life is to honor God in serving our fellow 
man. This is not a new philosophy. It was 
laid down in Judea some two thousand years 
ago when the Galilean said: “Whosoever 
will be great among you, let him be your 
minister; and whosoever will be chief among 


The Ultimate Aim 


137 


you, let him be your servant.'* While the 
doctrine may not be a popular one, no man 
dares contradict it. Some have accepted it 
and made themselves immortal by rendering 
distinguished service to the world. While 
most men, looking carefully after their own 
interest, sink into nameless graves, a few 
“forget themselves into immortality.” The 
truly great men of the world have been those 
who have rendered great service. “The Son 
of Man came not to be ministered unto, but 
to minister, and to give his life a ransom for 
many.” No nobler aim could be announced. 
Let wealth and knowledge and position and 
pleasure and all other things be consecrated 
to this noble aim, and the kingdom of God 
would soon be realized in this earth. Let 
wealth be'sought that it may be used in 
service to man. Let knowledge be acquired 
to be used for the promotion of man’s wel¬ 
fare. Let position be sought, not for the 
honor that it may offer, but for the oppor¬ 
tunity it may give to bless others. With this 
ultimate aim in view selfish ends and petty 
ambitions are eliminated, false ideals and 
low standards removed, and the whole of 
life lifted to the highest possible plane. 


X 

HOW TO FAIL 

No normal man wants to fail. Failure 
takes the sparkle from the eye, the color from 
the cheek, the edge from the intellect, and 
the nerve from the arm. The sense of failure 
depresses and dejects. It takes the sunshine 
out of life and brings the shadow. It takes 
joy from the heart and spreads sorrow and 
gloom. To fail utterly robs life of all satis¬ 
faction and contentment and fills it with 
misery and disappointment. 

And yet many fail. Failures are on every 
hand. Not only do high school and college 
students fail in the classroom, but men fail 
in every line of human endeavor. They fail 
as lawyers, as doctors, as ministers, as 
carpenters, as farmers, and as laborers in all 
other fields. There is no calling, no profes¬ 
sion, no avocation where success can be 
guaranteed to all who enter. Failures are 
found in all walks of life. Failure is evident 
in their dress, manifest in their walk, and 
written in their faces. 

There are many also who partially fail. 

(138) 


How to Fail 


139 


They do not fully measure up to the standard 
of success and are conscious of their own 
failure. They manage to get along somehow. 
They hold inferior positions, are known only 
in a very limited circle; and while by close 
economy they manage to square accounts 
monthly, they do not get the joy of mastery 
over the difficult situations and the full 
satisfaction of a successful life. They live 
with the sense of partial failures in their 
hearts and suffer humiliation in their own 
estimation. They do not get the fullness of 
life and the exhilaration of spirit that come 
to those who have met the requirements and 
measured up to the higher standards. 

There must be some cause for these un¬ 
happy failures. A human failure, from 
whatever source it may come, is a sad spec¬ 
tacle. For a human being, with such pos¬ 
sibilities and opportunities as are offered in 
America, to fail in accomplishing his proper 
task and reaching his best possibilities is 
enough to make the angels weep. God has 
filled the earth with innumerable blessings. 
There is room and plenty for all. He desires 
the joy and happiness of all his creatures 
and has made abundant provision for all the 


140 


Fundamentals of Success 


needs of man. But sin has entered and 
marred the lives of millions and made 
failure certain for a great part of them. 

Many fail on account of their inheritance 
and environment. They are born from a 
long line of failures. Failure is in their 
blood and bone. They breathe the atmos¬ 
phere of failure. They are surrounded by 
poverty, vice, and unhappiness. They know 
nothing but filth, misery, and squalor. 
They aspire to nothing beyond. There is 
nothing to encourage, nothing to inspire. 
Many of them are born with mental and 
moral deficiencies. Failure only can be ex¬ 
pected in such cases. When a boy is born of 
poor parentage, his ancestors for generations 
having utterly failed, he could hardly be 
expected to do better if kept in such en¬ 
vironment. When a youth comes from the 
haunts of poverty and vice, we blame his 
heritage rather than the individual youth. 

Yet out of such surroundings sometimes 
comes a boy who rises to a life of noble 
service. Wilbur Crafts tells of a college mate 
whose father was a poor, weak-minded 
donkey driver, while the son by hard work 
had come to be one of the most successful 


How to Fail 


141 


and honored teachers of Massachusetts. 
From this unhappy submerged tenth oc¬ 
casionally come some of the most valuable 
members of society, proving the great pos¬ 
sibilities of this humble class of people when 
the proper means can be found to awaken 
their dormant powers and bring them into a 
better environment. These people, as well 
as others, are made in the image of God and 
have latent capacities that ought to be 
aroused. Among them are many who, if 
given the proper surroundings, would rise 
to positions of influence and power. They 
fail partly because of their unwholesome 
environment. Sometime since while travel¬ 
ing in the country a fourteen-year-old lad 
fell into company with me. His father was a 
failure. The boy had a sallow skin, watery 
eyes, and a thick lip. His nose was weak and 
his jaw loosely hung. There seemed but 
little hope, but as we had forty minutes 
together along that beautiful country road 
I decided to awaken his ambition if pos¬ 
sible. For some time I talked with him as 
best I could about being a real man. I 
tried to show him how much nobler and 
better it was to be of real service to the 


14,2 Fundamentals of Success 

world than to be of no value to himself or 
others. In order to fix his attention se¬ 
curely I asked the question: “Do you expect 
to be a real manly man and of service to the 
world, or a mere scrub?” Without a 
moment’s hesitation he dropped his jaw, 
looked up the road, and replied: “Guess I’ll 
be a scrub.” He had never expected any¬ 
thing else—he had breathed that atmosphere 
from infancy. But little could be expected 
from such a source. 

But failures are found not only among the 
lowly born and poorly reared; they come 
also from homes of luxury, ease, and plenty. 
To be well born and happily surrounded is of 
immense importance, but it does not guaran¬ 
tee against failure. Happy is the youth who 
has good blood in his veins and wholesome 
environments in his home; but let no one 
imagine for a moment that this is a mark of 
certain success. Good blood and brains are 
valuable assets, but are not all the essentials 
to the noblest order of living. Out of the 
best homes come occasionally the most 
miserable failures. They disgrace them¬ 
selves and their families and by their un¬ 
worthy conduct are made most conspicuous 


How to Fail 


143 


failures. The grandson of Patrick Henry 
was a drunken wreck. The sons of some of 
the most distinguished men of the country 
are totally unworthy of their noble parent¬ 
age. They have failed utterly and have 
come to wreck and ruin. In my home city a 
leading business man said to me: “There are 
twenty young men in this city to-day who 
are sons of our most successful men, and not 
one of that twenty can make his own way in 
the world—they are complete failures.” 

There are causes for all these failures, and 
many of them might be removed. Some can 
be removed only by the State, some can be 
avoided by the family, and some by the in¬ 
dividual. The failures that are caused by 
hereditary influences, the lack of needed 
capacity and proper environment, I need 
not here discuss, but return my attention to 
those that seem more easily avoided. 

Many young men fail because they have 
no definite ambition in life. They come to 
the years of maturity with no life plan and 
with no specific object in view. They have 
selected no line of procedure, they have no 
profession, no avocation, nothing definite 
before them. They are the victims of cir- 


144 


Fundamentals of Success 


cumstances. They wait for something to 
“open up,” hoping to enter the opening and 
thereby earn daily bread. Failure is certain 
to follow such lack of method. A beautiful 
house cannot be built without plans and 
specifications wrought out in advance. They 
may be subject to change in the process of 
construction, but they are essential to the 
building. Neither can a great life be 
wrought out without plans and specifica¬ 
tions to guide the builder, though they may 
be subject also to changes in the process of 
construction. A young man who has no 
definite object in view is subject to change 
and must be weak and vacillating. He is 
likely to be shifting from one field to another 
and to be permanent nowhere. It frequently 
appears that the best place to fish is on the 
other side of the river. But the successful 
fisherman knows the river and the bait to be 
used. So in business it frequently appears 
that the other man has a better position, or 
a better business, and a change would be de¬ 
sirable. This may sometimes be true, and a 
change may be necessary. Some few suc¬ 
cessful men have changed two or three times 
in early life before settling permanently in 


How to Fail 


145 


their life work where they achieved great 
prosperity. But to be changing positions, or 
to be shifting from one business to another, 
is not often wise. “For he that wavereth is 
like a wave of the sea driven with the wind 
and tossed. Let not that man think that he 
shall receive anything,” said one of old. 
The man with no definite aim, no fixed 
purpose, is on the road to failure. If he 
would avoid certain failure, let him stop 
short and take his bearings. Let him look 
over the field and select some definite thing 
to do, and then let him do that one thing 
with all his might. Let him make sure that 
the chosen field shall be in keeping with his 
taste and shall afford constant interest and 
pleasure. Many men have failed because 
they have drifted into work for which they 
were not suited and in which they had lost 
all interest. In order to do his best a man 
must love his work and find joy in its ac¬ 
complishment. 

A rock upon which many go to pieces is 
the failure to look after details. The little 
things are sometimes of vast importance. 
A man is judged in his character frequently 
by the little things observed. “Trifles make 
IQ 


146 Fundamentals of Success 

perfection, but perfection is no trifle,’’ said 
Michelangelo. And as trifles make per¬ 
fection in art, so the trifles make perfection 
in business. Numerous small leaks can 
soon sink the largest ship afloat. Numerous 
small things going wrong can soon destroy 
the largest business concern. The head of 
any business affair is most efficient only when 
he knows the details of every department. 
His lack of knowledge in any particular de¬ 
partment lessens his efficiency in the same 
ratio. The head of every department must 
know every detail of his work and be able to 
keep everything in perfect order. Failure 
to keep up with details means proportional 
failure in the whole affair, since the whole is 
composed of all the parts. The microscopic 
eye is necessary in every field of human 
endeavor. The close look is essential. It 
pries into the minutest detail to make sure 
that everything is kept in proper order. 
The wide look sees relations. It discovers a 
man’s relations to other men and the rela¬ 
tions of his business to others’ business and 
seeks the proper adjustment. The far look 
sees into the future and plans for the coming 
days; it is telescopic. It looks down the 


How to Fail 


147 


years and prepares for coming events. It is 
never taken by surprise, for it discovers the 
trend of events and knows what to expect. 
The upward look is for divine guidance and 
aid. All these are essential to prevent 
failure. 

Bad company has been the cause of many 
serious failures. Evil fellowship has wrecked 
the fortunes of many promising young men 
and dragged them down in utter confusion 
and shame. Evil communications blight the 
future of thousands annually who ought to 
have escaped and reached noble efficiency. 
No man can seek the fellowship of the lewd 
and baser sort and escape unharmed. No 
man can take fire into his bosom and not be 
burned. No man can embrace the vile and 
not be stained. Most young men who seek 
such fellowship think themselves beyond its 
reach. They are deceived, and often when 
too late discover their mistake. The young 
man who seeks bad company may know he is 
going toward certain failure. He is himself 
becoming bad. When the imprisoned apos¬ 
tles were “let go, they went unto their own 
company.” Being set at liberty, they sought 
the congenial fellowship of their own kind. 


148 Fundamentals of Success 

So do all men seek the company of congenial 
fellowship. A man is known by the com¬ 
pany he keeps. If he consorts with the vile, 
it is evident that he is himself vile. Thou¬ 
sands of young men out of good homes have 
sought such fellowship and by it have been 
wrecked beyond recovery. Personally I 
have known a number of young men who 
have been reared in the best surroundings 
and who have had excellent capacity, but on 
account of evil companionship have been 
dragged down in humiliation and shame to 
premature graves. 

Recreation hours reveal characters even 
more clearly than business hours. A man 
may keep himself under restraint while he is 
in the office, or on duty of any kind, in order 
to measure up to the requirements of busi¬ 
ness. While off duty he is at ease and turns 
himself loose to be free without restraint. 
In these hours he reveals his real nature and 
seeks the things that bring him greatest 
pleasure. If in this time he seeks to spend 
his hours among wicked companions, he may 
be assured that failure awaits him. The 
prodigal son came to ruin by wasting his 
substance in ‘‘riotous living” among men of 


How to Fail 149 

-4 

evil morals. Into this whirlpool thousands 
have been drawn from our best homes, 
never to be rescued, but finally lost in degra¬ 
dation and shame. Bad habits result from 
bad company with all the certainty of the 
laws of cause and effect. “We are a part of 
all that we have met.” When one meets 
evil constantly and voluntarily and seeks to 
meet it, he must be influenced by its contact. 
Evil habits are not usually original with 
young men, but learned from associates. 
No man can fellowship villains without 
becoming vile— 

‘'Vice is a monster of so frightful mien, 

As to be hated needs but to be seen; 

Yet seen too oft, familiar with her face, 

We first endure, then pity, then embrace.” 

Vicious habits naturally result from fellow¬ 
ship with the vile. They are at first re¬ 
pugnant, but later endured and adopted. 

The awful habit of drink follows from 
fellowship with the convivial crowd. It 
would rarely be indulged but for the in¬ 
fluence of those already addicted. On this 
rock millions have gone to ruin, and others 
are now on the way. The drink evil is the 
most staggering problem of to-day. It has 


150 Fundamentals of Success 

blighted some of the most brilliant men of 
the nation. It has wrecked more homes, 
destroyed more business, blighted more 
lives, and caused more trouble than any 
other single factor in all the land. So ter¬ 
rible have been the effects of rum that many 
of the great corporations now refuse to 
employ any man who drinks. They know 
that drink disqualifies for business and 
renders unsafe any man who follows in its 
wake. No man is perfectly trustworthy who 
drinks. The only safe plan is to be a total 
abstainer. 

Indolence soon takes possession of all who 
seek the fellowship of thriftless and worth¬ 
less associates. Indolence and failure are 
fast friends and travel hand in hand. Indo¬ 
lence and success are strangers. They never 
meet save on the highway and have nothing 
in common. Indolence breeds failure. Two 
of my boyhood friends started with equal 
opportunity and apparently equal capacity. 
One was industrious and frugal, the other 
lazy and prodigal. The former is now a 
wealthy landowner held in high esteem, the 
latter a tenant and without influence or 
honor. Indolence brings poverty, shame, 


How to Fail 


151 


and reproach. It is the constant companion 
of failure. Indolence among the rich is just 
as reprehensible as laziness among the poor. 
The indolent young dude who never earned 
a dollar in his life, but gets his spending 
montey from an inherited income, is no more 
entitled to respect than the trifling bum who 
gets his living from the earnings of his wife at 
the washtub. Both alike are useless in 
society and deserve the condemnation of all 
good men; they are parasites on the body 
politic. The one is just as much of a failure 
as the other. 

Sensuality has likewise destroyed a great 
host and brought them face to face with 
dismal failure. Into this whirling vortex 
millions have been drawn, never to escape. 
The danger signals have been displayed, 
warnings have been uttered, and yet the 
heedless youths continue to perish here in 
countless thousands. In the olden days the 
wise man warned: “Beware of the strange 
woman. Lust not after her beauty. Re¬ 
move thy way from her, for her house in- 
clineth to death. She has cast down many 
wounded: yea, many strong men have been 
slain by her. Her house is the way to hell, 


152 Fundamentals of Success 

going down to the chambers of death. 
In these ringing words the young man of 
to-day is warned against her snares and 
urged to flee her house. Samson fell a victim 
to her charms, and thoughtless multitudes 
have shared his unhappy fate. 

Extravagance is frequently induced by the 
adoption of other bad habits. Many of them 
cannot be indulged without going beyond 
the income of the average young man. 
Spending more than one’s income is always 
extravagance and leads directly to serious 
embarrassment and failure. Many fine 
young fellows with splendid qualities have 
become entangled in this net, as the fly in 
the net of the spider, and have been brought 
to disgrace and ruin. They have fallen into 
fellowship with those who were spending 
more than they could afford and, not having 
the courage to break away from such as¬ 
sociations, have been led to ruin by extrava¬ 
gant expenditures. Such conduct leads to 
new difficulties and always ends in dis¬ 
astrous failure. 

Dishonesty follows naturally upon the 
heels of extravagance. On account of the 
needless expenditure of money and the con- 


How to Fail 


153 


sequent embarrassment for immediate funds 
many have strayed from the path of honor 
and stolen the cash to meet urgent needs. 
Usually they expect to replace the funds 
at the first possible opportunity and fre¬ 
quently are led into some of the many 
gambling schemes in the vain hope of 
making a lucky strike to replace the stolen 
funds. This, of course, is playing fast 
and loose with fortune and invariably ends 
in dire disaster. The first penny stolen from 
the cash drawer is a long step toward ruin. 
It makes the one who takes it nothing less 
than a thief and paves the way to larger and 
more daring theft. 

Nothing better can be said for the 
gambler. He is not far removed from the 
thief. Gambling is getting or giving 
something of value without giving or getting 
its equivalent in return. This is one of the 
glaring sins of America to-day and unless 
checked by law will lead us as a nation into 
the most serious danger. The gambling 
instinct is strong and must be curbed. Men 
gamble in every sort of way from the election 
of the nation’s president to the throwing of 
dice in the back alley. It endangers the mor- 


154 


Fundamentals of Success 


als of the republic. Gambling stifles the spirit 
of industry and fosters the spirit of avarice 
and dishonesty. No gambler can be a truly 
honest man. He proposes to take something 
without offering any value in return. Gam¬ 
bling in stocks is no better than gambling 
with cards or at the faro table. It is risk¬ 
ing a hazard upon a contingency. One of 
the leading financiers of America sometime 
since said: “Not one in ten of the stock 
gamblers quits with profits.” The inex¬ 
perienced man who risks his guess against 
the experienced stock gambler’s judgment 
needs brains worse than he needs money, 
however much he may need the latter. 
Thousands have been wrecked financially 
and morally in these most useless and shame¬ 
less hazards. 

If you desire to make failure sure and to 
lose the blessed opportunity of making your 
life worth while, then stray into any one of 
these pitfalls that have been set for unwary 
feet, and failure is certain. Let no one think 
himself wiser than the thousands who have 
already been snared. These deluded ones 
expected to escape unharmed, but their ruin 
belies their judgment and warns against 


How to Fail . 


155 


these dangerous places of death. Loiter not 
around them; flee from them as you would 
a foul pestilence. 

Never drift aimlessly with the current; 
never neglect the smallest detail of business; 
never consort with the vile; never adopt evil 
habits; look not on the wine when it is red; 
fold not your hands in idle sloth; keep your 
life pure and chaste, live within your means, 
be honest and never gamble, and you will 
never fail. 


XI 

THE MEANING OF SUCCESS 

Success! How men have toiled and suf¬ 
fered and sacrificed to achieve it! How 
fascinating the word to an ambitious youth! 
It stirs his blood to contemplate its vast 
significance. The very word quickens his 
pulse, warms his heart, and fires his soul. He 
determines to achieve it and all that it im¬ 
plies. He can hardly wait to make necessary 
preparation for the effort. He thinks of it by 
day and dreams of it by night. It is the con¬ 
suming passion of his soul. He is eager to 
get into the great race of life. The future is 
full of hope and promise. He chafes under 
the restraint of college days and longs for 
graduation. He yearns to try his strength. 

Such dreaming and longing are good for the 
youth. The world’s progress has been led by 
dreamers. Joseph was a dreamer; he dared 
dream of the greatness of his future when 
brothers and parents alike would bow before 
him in obeisance. Galileo dreamed of a new 
heaven and a new earth and by his telescope 
proved his dreams true. Newton dreamed 
(156) 


The Meaning of Success 157 

of the laws of gravitation and established 
their verity. Watt dreamed of his steam 
engine long before he ever wrought it into 
real fact. Columbus dreamed of a new world 
and a new route to find it long before he 
discovered America. The great progress of 
the world has been wrought by dreamers. 
They have wrought out in daydreams their 
plans and executed them later in actual fact. 
The great works of art existed first only in 
the minds of the artist. They were after¬ 
wards put on the canvas, carved from mar¬ 
ble, or put into writing. 

Let the young man dream, but let him not 
end in dreaming. The execution of the 
dream is as important as the dream. If you 
dream, let not dreams be your master. 
When dreaming and execution go hand in 
hand, the proper combination is formed and 
results may be expected. How pitiable the 
youth who has no dreams of future success, 
no burning ambition to win honor among 
men and have his name held in high esteem! 
Water never rises higher than its own level, 
nor man higher than his own ambitions. 
Success is achieved by those who eagerly 
long for its achievement, 


158 Fundamentals of Success 

But what of the meaning of “success”? 
Does the word convey the same idea to all 
minds? By no means. Like the blind men 
in the fable of the elephant, each thinks it is 
something different. To one success means 
the accomplishment of certain ends, while 
to another it means something totally 
different. 

To many aspiring young Americans suc¬ 
cess means political prestige and power. 
They desire to be known among the states¬ 
men of the day and wield the scepter of 
political influence. They dream of office and 
honor and power. They dream of “treading 
senatorial halls” and being known among 
the great men of the nation. They expect to 
see their names in the headlines of the great 
daily papers and themselves in conference 
with world leaders. This is their goal of 
success. It is a worthy one if honorably 
attained. To wield the marvelous power of 
William Jennings Bryan, Theodore Roose¬ 
velt, or Woodrow Wilson is worthy of the 
highest ambition of the most gifted youth. 
They rose to eminence by genuine merit and 
used their power for the good of the nation. 
To hold high position, as some have done, 


The Meaning of Success 159 

by the corruption of the ballot is no honor, 
but a disgrace to him who has unworthily 
purchased his place with ill-gotten gains. 
Aaron Burr held high place, but by his 
shameful conduct disgraced himself and his 
nation. In spite of his brilliant intellect and 
high position, he was a total failure. 

To maiiy ambitious young men success 
means the accumulation of wealth and all 
that wealth can buy. It means big business, 
a palatial home, expensive automobiles, 
pleasure yachts, hunting grounds, and all the 
accompaniments of a great fortune. It 
means the gratification of all the natural 
appetites; it stands for comforts, ease, 
luxury, and power. This is perhaps the 
popular ideal of success in America. But this 
is possible without real success. A fortune 
may be accumulated by a man who is in 
reality a failure at heart. Wealth is no 
sure criterion of success. It means success 
in a monetary way, but there are things more 
valuable than money. Honor is above the 
price of gold. Character is higher than 
wealth. Wisdom is better than rubies. It 
is better to be a real man than a mere mil¬ 
lionaire. A million dollars dishonestly taken 


160 


Fundamentals of Success 


from the public can be no honor to any 
thief. To acquire a fortune honestly and use 
it wisely is very commendable. If acquired 
to squander on selfish lusts and ambitions, 
it is a curse rather than a blessing to him who 
piles it up and to his family after him. 
Great wealth is not essential to success, 
though it may attend a successful career. 
Money is without moral quality. It is 
neither good nor bad in itself. It is a force 
made good or bad by the use that is made of 
it. Fire when under control is the obedient 
servant of man ready to bless and brighten 
life, but when fire becomes master it destroys 
without mercy. Likewise money, when 
properly controlled, is our obedient servant 
to bless and brighten life, but when money 
masters the man it may destroy and “drown 
in perdition.” There is no sin in the honor¬ 
able accumulation of wealth, but there is 
great danger. Where great wealth has 
proved an unmixed blessing to one it has 
been a curse to hundreds. 

Many times a man has acquired a fortune 
and maintained his own integrity, dying in 
due time in the Christian faith. But by his 
wealth and social position his children have 


The Meaning of Success 161 

been thrown into the whirl of worldly and 
godless circles where the light of heaven has 
been shut out and the life filled with the 
fleeting and sinful pleasures of the carnal 
nature. They have forgotten God, disowned 
Christ, and forsaken the Church. They have 
plunged into the vortex of sensual satisfac¬ 
tions and lived in the luxury and debauchery 
of shameless sin. Can the father who ac¬ 
cumulated the wealth to damn his own 
family be counted successful? It is infinitely 
better to remain in honorable comfort or 
even in direst poverty with God than roll in 
the luxury of wealth without God and with¬ 
out hope. 

To many others success means a lawyer’s 
apartments, or a physician’s office, with a 
large practice and all its honors and emolu¬ 
ments, or the editorship of a great daily 
paper, or the authorship of popular books, 
or the pastorate of a great Church, or the 
building of a railway system, or the owner¬ 
ship of a great farm or ranch. In many ways 
young men picture a successful career—in as 
many ways as there are young men. But 
merely to accomplish such ends is not the 
highest order of success. They must be ac- 
11 


162 


Fundamentals of Success 


complished in honor with due regard for the 
rights of others. There are lawyers and 
doctors and editors and preachers and 
authors and all other kinds of men in high 
places who are failures at the core. To ac¬ 
quire wealth, achieve fame, or satisfy selfish 
ambition in any way does not necessarily 
mean success of the highest kind. They 
do indicate a certain measure of success. 
They are eagerly sought by many, and 
when achieved they are so far successful. 
But in the true sense of the word the man 
who walks to his place of business and 
honestly earns his way through the world is 
more successful than the shrewd thief who 
rides by in his sedan driven by a chauffeur 
to his office where by legal methods he robs 
the people of what he has never earned. 
The honest voter who lives by the sweat of 
his face in daily toil, though not known be¬ 
yond his own precinct, is really more suc¬ 
cessful than the wealthy politician who buys 
his way into the United States Senate. 
Office secured by fraud can never be held 
with honor. 

To the undiscerning success means the 
securing of one’s desires, or the accomplish- 


The Meaning of Success 


163 


ment of one’s will. This is only partially 
true. Ahab secured Naboth’s vineyard by 
murder and confiscation, but nobody thinks 
of Ahab as a successful king. Herodias ac¬ 
complished her will in the death of John the 
Baptist, but she is never pointed out as a 
successful woman of her day. They both 
had position and power, but abused them in 
the wrongful gratification of selfish designs. 

To accumulate wealth honorably or to 
achieve distinction by noble service meets 
the conditions of success, though neither 
fame nor wealth is essential to a successful 
life. To measure up to one’s best efforts at 
all times and under all circumstances is to 
live the truly successful life. One may not 
be known far from his own home, he may not 
acquire great wealth, he may not perform 
any distinguished service, and yet be known 
as a man of honor and true success. Men 
are differently gifted. When much is given 
much is required. When little is given but 
little is required. Success is therefore a 
relative term—what would be counted a 
successful career for one man might not be 
so regarded for the more gifted. When one 
uses his best efforts at all times and lives up 


164 


Fundamentals of Success 


to his greatest efficiency it is a successful life 
for him. All men cannot be millionaires— 
there is not enough money to go around. 
All cannot be famous statesmen—there are 
not enough offices. All cannot be great 
editors or authors. All cannot get in the 
limelight. But all can have plenty and com¬ 
fort and honor. There is room for all, there 
is plenty and to spare. All can have a com¬ 
petency, occupy the place for which they are 
intended, and live honorably in contentment 
and happiness. Wealth and fame, however 
desirable, are not essential to success. A 
quiet, faithful, and patient mother who rears 
noble children, though not known beyond 
the circle of a few friends, is more successful 
than an unworthy governor who fails in the 
faithful discharge of his official duties. 
“Little things are little things, but to do 
little things faithfully is a great thing.” 
Do your best under all circumstances, and 
you have succeeded to the measure of your 
ability. 

The man who does his work well, who lives 
within his income, who pays his accounts 
promptly, who honors his word, who pro¬ 
vides for his own, who lives in love and chari- 


The Meaning of Success . 


165 


ty with his neighbors, who fears Go^ and 
keeps his commandments, is a successful 
man in the true sense of the word. His may 
not be a brilliant success, but it is a true one. 

All men do not succeed in the same degree. 
Some have achieved success in a moderate 
way, some in a higher form, and others in the 
most brilliant degree. There are many 
grades of success and many routes by which 
it may be achieved. The modest man who 
lives in comfort and honor has achieved 
success in a modest way. The more talented 
man who by integrity and business ef¬ 
ficiency has accumulated more than a 
competency and by conspicuous service has 
won recognition in a wider circle has suc¬ 
ceeded in a more liberal way. The man who 
by genuine merit and unusual ability and 
distinguished service has won national repu¬ 
tation has reached the degree of brilliant 
success. And thus we may ascend by de¬ 
grees from the modest man with a moderate 
success up to the man who by sterling in¬ 
tegrity, brilliant intellect, and unusual serv¬ 
ice to his country has won enduring fame 
not only in America but throughout the 
world. 


XII 

CONDITIONS OF SUCCESS 

The finest of all fine arts Is the art of suc¬ 
cessful living. Like the other fine arts, it 
cannot be learned by rule, but by sincere and 
honest effort. A great picture cannot be 
painted by printed instructions it is by 
infinite approximations. A great life cannot 
be lived by rule—it is by infinite effort, by 
trying, trying, trying. Little things can be 
done by rule, but the big things are done by 
constant toil and intelligent effort. Suc¬ 
cess is like solving a rebus,” says Frank 
Crane, “more than it is like demonstrating 
a theorem in geometry. It is like starting a 
fire with damp wood more than it is like 
getting chemical reaction in a laboratory.” 

No guidebook has ever been written that 
can direct the reader infallibly in the road 
that leads to certain success. No recipe can 
be composed that will guarantee success to 
every holder, however carefully he may try 
to follow printed instructions. In physics, 
chemistry, and mathematics the laws are 
exact. The same causes always produce the 
( 166 ) 


Conditions of Success 


167 


same effect. You can work by rule and get 
certain results. But in the laws of human 
conduct there are so many variable factors 
and so many unknown quantities that no 
absolute law can be given that will in all 
cases bring the same results. In heredity 
and environment there are many variations, 
though the laws hold good for the “average.” 
Sometimes two brothers born in the same 
home and of the same parentage, with the 
same blood and bone, and with the same 
environment, the same opportunities, are 
entirely different. One grows to a noble 
manhood, and by honest industry accumu¬ 
lates a competency and by distinguished 
service brings honor to himself and family, 
while the other is listless, lazy, untrust¬ 
worthy, and utterly fails. These variations 
baffle the most astute scientists. 

And yet there are general conditions that 
may be stated which govern the painting of 
great pictures, the writing of great books, 
the solving of a rebus, the starting of a fire 
with damp wood, and the living of a success¬ 
ful life. There are certain general conditions 
that must be observed in order to obtain 
desired results. 


168 Fundamentals of Success 

Native capacity is the first and most 
fundamental condition in a successful career 
of the first order. For an ordinary career 
only ordinary ability is required. But to 
achieve success in the extraordinary way a 
large ability is essential. One who has in¬ 
herited inferior mental capacity is handi¬ 
capped and cannot hope to go beyond his 
limitations. Only those who are gifted with 
large mental endowment can attain the high¬ 
est places and win lasting fame. Moses, Soc¬ 
rates, Plato, Paul, and Shakespeare were gift¬ 
ed with colossal intellects and stand preemi¬ 
nent among men. The man with limited 
mental capacity cannot accomplish the great 
things of life. He is limited by his ability and 
cannot go beyond his reach. It is evident 
that capacity may be wonderfully developed. 
A man’s mind, like his muscle, grows by 
exercise. When a young man uses his mind 
at full capacity for noble ends it will grow 
with the using. “To him that hath [used 
his opportunity] shall be given, and he shall 
have abundance: but from him that hath not 
shall be taken away even that which he 
hath.” When he fails to use his capacity, it 
cannot increase, but rather becomes atro- 


Conditions of Success 


169 


phied. A man of good natural endowment 
may by proper exercise of his capacity grow 
continually for years and become more and 
more effective. Patient industry can over¬ 
come in some measure a lack of the large 
natural endowment. Hard work, as we 
shall see later, can do wonders. Be not dis¬ 
couraged with your inherited ability. You 
have had nothing to do with your inherit¬ 
ance, but you have everything to determine 
about what you will do with the opportuni¬ 
ties and abilities inherited. By a wise use of 
them you may make your life a joy and a 
blessing. 

But it is a self-evident fact that for the 
large affairs of life to be handled in the best 
possible way a large capacity is essential. 
Men are differently gifted. Some have large 
capacity, while others are limited. A small 
and untrained mind could not grasp the 
details of a large department of the govern¬ 
ment, but it might handle efficiently some 
small detail work. 

By native ability I mean in the first place 
a large and strong mind that can see not only 
the details of any given problem, but see the 
whole problem and see it in its relations to 


170 Fundamentals of Success 

other problems and to the whole world of 
facts. It is the power to take in the whole 
situation fully and determine with confidence 
what is best to be done in the premises. 
Some men have no perspective view. They 
cannot see far and wide. They see only the 
details of the problem immediately at hand. 
They cannot see the relations to other 
similar problems. They are not tall enough 
to see over the entire field. Such men are 
not fitted for leadership. They can never 
achieve the greatest results. They are small 
men and are prepared only for small places. 
The strong mind with a strong grasp and 
with a comprehensive view is essential to 
the greatest success. 

By large native capacity I mean also the 
power of concentration of mind on a given 
point or problem—the ability to bring all 
the powers of the mind to bear upon a given 
subject until that subject is thoroughly 
mastered. The habit of complete mastery 
of the problem in hand is essential to the 
highest success. This ability gives command 
of the situation and assures the successful 
issue of each undertaking. 

I wish also to include in the idea of native 


Conditions of Success 


171 


capacity the element of attractiveness, some¬ 
times called personal magnetism. If you are 
to deal successfully with men, you must draw 
them to you, rather than repel them from 
you. You must have the element that wins 
men and does not make them indifferent or 
antagonistic. It is a quality hard to define, 
but easy to discover in one who has it. 
Sometimes a public speaker has a well- 
prepared message, but there is no element in 
the speaker’s personality to attract—you 
listen only by a conscious effort. Another 
speaker follows; and as soon as he stands on 
the platform, even before he utters a word, 
you feel his strong magnetic touch drawing 
you out. You listen with readiness and ease. 
He has the personal magnetism that at¬ 
tracts and holds your attention. With this 
blessed power you must be born. It comes 
naturally under the head of inherited native 
capacity. 

The last element that I include in this 
first general topic of native capacity is the 
power of initiative. It is the ability to be 
original, to think independently and in¬ 
augurate new enterprises. This is essential 
in the most successful life. It assures prog- 


172 Fundamentals of Success 

ress, newness, freshness, and therefore added 
interest. The ordinary mind follows the old 
ruts. It never gets into a new path. It has 
no initiative; it accepts authority and follows 
the beaten way. The man with initiative 
hews out a new road, does old things in a new 
way, states old truths in new phrases, and 
sees old truths in a new light. Galileo, 
Kepler, Watt, and Marconi observed the 
same things seen by others for centuries, but 
they saw them in a new light. They dared 
to reject old conclusions and hew out new 
paths for thought. Milton, Whitman, Kip¬ 
ling, and many others blazed new paths in 
the literary world. They had initiative; they 
were original. In the world of art, science, 
or business the men with originality and 
initiative are the ones who succeed. This 
presumes the power to see new relations and 
discover new combinations and to so arrange 
and coordinate them as to get the most 
pleasing results. 

A clear-cut, well-defined purpose is the 
second qualification for a successful career. 
To have a large capacity is not sufficient. 
To possess great native ability and have 
nothing definite in view to accomplish would 


Conditions of Sixcess 


173 


be of little value. There must be some well- 
defined plan, some specific object in view. 
A great steamer at sea without a chart, 
compass, or rudder and with no captain and 
no port of entry in view would be a sad 
spectacle and at the mercy qf the wind and 
waves. It would never get anywhere. The 
captain must have chart and compass and 
know his destination. No worthy captain 
ever leaves the harbor without some special 
port in view and never sails the sea without 
some definite purpose to accomplish. Yet 
many young people start on the sea of life 
without any chart or compass or any special 
port in view. They are drifting, they know 
not where. They will never enter the harbor 
of Success. 

To change the figure, the marksman must 
have some definite mark at which he aims, 
or he can p^ver hope to hit. The amateur 
sportsman may fire at random into a 
flushed covey of quail and accidentally kill 
one or more, but the experienced hunter 
singles out his bird and aims directly at one. 
The hunter who aims at nothing is almost 
sure to hit it. The young man who has no 
definite purpose in view, who aims at noth- 


174 Fundamentals of Success 

ing in particular, is almost sure to ac¬ 
complish nothing. Since he has no specific 
object in view, nothing definite to accomplish 
in life, he cannot hopfe to do anything of 
consequence. 

George Stuart tells the story of two boys 
who went out one Saturday to hunt. They 
hunted all day and found nothing but a 
ravenous appetite and killed nothing but 
time. They carried an old-fashioned muzzle¬ 
loading shortgun with an iron ramrod. 
Returning home late in the afternoon, the 
older boy said: 11 George, let’s see how far we 
can shoot this ramrod.” “All right,” said 
the younger. They stopped in an open 
glade, drew the iron ramrod from its ac¬ 
customed place, dropped it into the muzzle 
of the gun, and the older boy turned the gun 
at an angle of forty-five degrees and fired into 
the open air, aiming at nothing. He watched 
to see what became of the rod. It fell to the 
earth, he never knew where. In disappoint¬ 
ment he turned to his friend and said: 
“George, the next time I shoot I’ll be blamed 
if I don’t aim at something.” How many 
in life, like the boy with the gun, aim at 
nothing! All who aim at nothing may be 


Conditions of Success 


175 


assured that they will hit it. The man who 
has no great purpose and no definite life plan 
to execute may be sure of failure. Every 
young man ought to know what he desires 
to do. 

This great controlling purpose ought not 
to be definitely fixed too early in life. A 
general purpose to be of real value in the 
world cannot be fixed too early. Sometimes 
a mere youth discovers easily the bent of his 
mind and settles his life work in his early 
teens, but this is by no means necessary. 
It may be delayed until nineteen or twenty, 
or in some cases even later. It should never 
be finally fixed until the young man is sure 
of his ground. He ought to know his own 
inclinations, the work for which he is best 
adapted and which appeals to him most. 
A mistake here often proves fatal. The 
college course gives the college student the 
best opportunity to “find himself” and 
determine positively the work for which he 
is best suited. In no case ought this decision 
to be made in haste, but with the most care¬ 
ful consideration and earnest prayer for 
divine guidance. “Take this for your motto 
at the commencement of your journey,” said 


176 


Fundamentals of Success 


Amos Lawrence, “that the difference of 
going just right or a little wrong will be the 
difference of finding yourself in good quarters 
or in a miserable bog or slough at the end of 
it.” You cannot afford to go wrong, so 
“be sure you are right and then go ahead.” 
When the course is once decided, it ought to 
be steadily pursued. Bridges ought to be 
burned behind and the future regarded with 
faith and assurance. 

The worthiness or unworthiness of the 
purpose shall, of course, determine in large 
measure the issues of life. To select a field 
that is narrow and limited is to limit pos¬ 
sibilities. To enter a field that is broad and 
offers large opportunities gives a wider range 
for service and promotion. Let no one 
choose a life work into which he cannot 
throw himself with all the zeal and earnest¬ 
ness of his soul. An unworthy purpose 
necessitates an unworthy life. A noble 
purpose is a great inspiration. 

Thorough preparation is the next es¬ 
sential. No man can hope to reach the 
highest success in any given field of human 
endeavor without making adequate prepara¬ 
tion. It matters not how well-defined his 


Conditions of Success 


177 


purpose, unless he knows how to execute his 
purpose it will be of no avail. Proper prepa¬ 
ration is necessary in any field to get the best 
results. The captains of industry are look¬ 
ing for prepared men—men who know how 
to do the work assigned. There are thou¬ 
sands of men to-day looking for good posi¬ 
tions who could not hold them if found. 
There are thousands of good positions look¬ 
ing for prepared men. The prepared man is 
in demand. He is a success. Ask for the 
leading lawyer of your city, and you will be 
referred to one who has made careful prep¬ 
aration for his life work. Seek the leading 
physician, and you will find one who has 
spent long years in careful and painstaking 
preparation for his profession. Go hear the 
leading divine, and you will hear a man who 
has prepared himself for his calling and who 
prepares every sermon he delivers. Ask for 
your most expert civil engineer, and you will 
be referred to one who has made expert prep¬ 
aration. Go to the country and look for the 
most successful farmer, and you will find one 
who has somewhere learned the great art of 
farming. It is the prepared man who suc¬ 
ceeds. 


12 


178 


Fundamentals of Success 


In this connection it must be stated that a 
college education helps to lay a broad and 
deep foundation for the most successful 
living. The value of such training can hard¬ 
ly be overstated. In the earlier days when 
colleges and universities were not so numer¬ 
ous a college training was not so essential; 
but few competitors had enjoyed such 
training. But that day has passed. All over 
the country the promising young men are 
attending college and making special prepa¬ 
ration for their life work. Competition is 
fiercer now than ever before. Into whatever 
field you enter you touch elbows with college 
men who are trained for their field of service. 
If you have been denied such training, unless 
unusually gifted you will soon be left behind 
in the great race of life. From the days of 
our early history America has been led 
largely by college-trained men. Forty-two 
of the fifty-six signers of the Declaration of 
American Independence were men of liberal 
learning. While only one-half of one per 
cent of our total population have college 
training, forty-two per cent of our Senators, 
seventy-two per cent of our Presidents, and 
eighty-three per cent of our Supreme Court 


Conditions of Success 


179 


judges have come from the various colleges 
of America. These are significant figures and 
indicate that in all probability the pathway 
to success in the higher way lies through the 
college hall. 

It is readily admitted that some of Ameri¬ 
ca’s most distinguished men have been with¬ 
out college training. Edmonds, Sherman, 
Levi P. Morton, Cornell, and many others 
were denied such advantages. By native 
ability and genuine merit they forged their 
way to the forefront, and in spite of their 
handicap held their well-earned places 
among the most celebrated men of the day. 
But these have been the exception and not 
the rule. Our leaders have been men of 
learning from the beginning of our history 
even to the present day. The future will not 
witness a change in this respect. From the 
Week's Progress I take the following: 

The United States Commissioner of Education has 
taken a novel method of determining with some degree 
of accuracy the value of an education in life—or, rather, 
the value of higher education. It is so frequently 
claimed that a college education is of no practical ad¬ 
vantage in meeting the problems of real life that this 
effort to answer the question is interesting, though, 
from the nature of the case, not wholly convincing. 


180 Fundamentals of Success 

The system followed was to take a volume of “Who’s 
Who in America” and examine the mental training of 
those who are included. This volume contains some¬ 
thing over 10,000 names annually of men who have dis¬ 
tinguished themselves in some way by business or 
professional success, though, naturally to come into 
the public eye their services must have been of a public 
or semipublic nature, thereby eliminating that vast 
number who have accomplished personal successes 
which are not of the nature to attract publicity. The 
United States Bureau of Education has therefore asked 
the men included in this volume for the details regarding 
their education, and, eliminating all those who are 
under 30 years of age, statements were received from 
10,704 as follows: 

Without education, none; self-taught, 24; home- 
taught, 278; with common school training only, 1,066; 
with high school training, 1,627; with college training, 
7,709, of whom 6,129 were graduates. That is: 

From 1800 to 1870 the uneducated boy in the United 
States failed entirely to become so notable in any de¬ 
partment of usefulness and reputable endeavor as to 
attract the attention of the “Who’s Who editors, and 
that only 24 self-taught men succeeded. 

A boy with only a common school education had, in 
round numbers, one chance in 9,000. 

A high-school training increased this chance nearly 
twenty-two times. 

College education added gave the young man about 
ten times the chance of a high-school boy and 200 times 
the chance of the boy whose training stopped with the 
common school. 

The A.B. graduate was preeminently successful, and 
the self-educated man was inconspicuous. 

In conclusion the commissioner says: “It is unneces- 


Conditions of Success 


181 


sary to extend this inquiry to woman. Education is 
practically her only door to eminence." 

The Hebrew sage has well said: “ Happy is 
the man that findeth wisdom, and the man 
that getteth understanding. For the mer¬ 
chandise of it is better than the merchandise 
of silver, and the gain thereof than fine gold. 
She is more precious than rubies: and all the 
things thou canst desire are not to be com¬ 
pared unto her. Length of days is in her 
right hand; and in her left hand riches and 
honor. . . . Wisdom is the principal thing; 
therefore get wisdom: and with all thy get¬ 
ting get understanding. Exalt her, and she 
shall promote thee: she shall bring thee to 
honor, when thou dost embrace her. She 
shall give to thine head an ornament of 
grace: a crown of glory shall she deliver to 
thee.” While his idea of wisdom may not be 
exactly synonymous With the present-day 
idea of public education, yet it is nearly in 
keeping with the idea of Christian education 
as offered in the best denominational col¬ 
leges of America. 

According to Dr. Nicholas Murray Butler, 
the president of Columbia University, edu¬ 
cation is a gradual adjustment of the in- 


182 Fundamentals of Success 

dividual to the spiritual possessions of the 
race in the fields of science, literature, 
aesthetics, institutions, and religion. When 
a man is thus adjusted he is equipped, for 
useful and effective life activities. This idea 
is in keeping with the idea of education as 
understood by many churchmen of to-day. 
We believe in the education of the entire 
man. 

It is therefore evident that every youth 
who hopes to rise above mere mediocrity 
ought to seek the advantages of a first-class 
college training. It is almost essential and 
is in reach of every youth of good mind and 

body. ... rr 

Any young man who has in him the stuff 

out of which a real man can be made can 
secure a college education. A large sum of 
ready cash is not essential for the beginning, 
not even a wealthy relative or friend to stand 
back of the aspirant. A ready wit and will¬ 
ing hand are the two great essentials for tak¬ 
ing a course in college to-day. In many of 
our colleges now there are so many ways 
whereby a deserving young man can earn a 
part or all of his expenses and so many 
philanthropic people who are ready to assist 


Conditions of Success . 


183 


a deserving youth that there is no reason for 
an ambitious person to enter life without a 
college training. Under my own observation 
have passed a number of excellent young 
men who have earned their way through 
an entire college course. It was my own ex¬ 
perience. I am sometimes persuaded to be¬ 
lieve that the best start a young man can 
have in life is a healthy mind and body, a 
good name, a consuming passion to accom¬ 
plish some great object in life, and—no 
money. This kind of young fellow never 
fails. 

Be not discouraged though you have no 
money. America’s greatest men started 
without friends or influential backing. It 
is merit that wins. Force the issue. Do not 
wait for a “puli’’—demonstrate your own 
power to “push.” 


XIII 

MORE CONDITIONS OF SUCCESS 

Sterling integrity must be written next 
as one of the chief fundamentals of a truly 
successful life. The word “sterling” has an 
interesting derivation. In the long ago 
Germans coming to England to trade were 
called Easterlings, as they came from the 
East. They had a coin known for its free¬ 
dom from alloy which in England came to be 
called “Easterling money.” It was eagerly 
sought by the English. But the word 
“easterling” was soon shortened to “ster¬ 
ling,” and “sterling” soon came to signify 
“without alloy” or “pure.” The word 
“integrity” is, of course, derived from the 
Latin “integer,” signifying “whole or en¬ 
tire, wanting in none of its parts.” There¬ 
fore a man of “sterling integrity” is one who 
in his entire being is free from harmful alloy. 
He is clean in his life, upright in his walk, 
honest in his dealings, and thoroughly re¬ 
liable in every way. 

There are many shams, cheats, humbugs, 
and frauds in the world, but they are all 
(184) 


More Conditions of Success 185 

miserable failures. They are held in pity or 
contempt by honorable men. They have 
been deluded by false ideals and actually 
believe that in order to succeed in business 
they must be dishonest and therefore fail in 
a noble life. Recently a small merchant, 
after telling me of a year of prosperous busi¬ 
ness, admitted, unblushingly, that no man 
could be honest and succeed in business. 
He did not seem to realize that he was con¬ 
fessing himself a thief, or if he did he ap¬ 
peared to have no sense of shame. Small 
merchants in large cities may live and thrive 
by the tricks of the trade, but no man any¬ 
where can live a truly successful life and 
practice dishonest methods. The father of 
lies has never foisted on the world a more 
pernicious falsehood than the one that makes 
men believe that dishonesty is the best road 
to success. A thief may sometimes succeed 
in accumulating wealth, the sole object of 
his search, but he can never be a successful 
man. Many men in America have robbed 
the public of just values and made fortunes 
by stealing from honest people, but no 
amount of wealth can make a thief or robber 
respectable in the eyes of honest men. No 


186 Fundamentals of Success 

real man cares to secure wealth by such 
means, nor could he enjoy money thus ob¬ 
tained. When such a man stands before the 
judgment bar of God there will be two em¬ 
barrassing questions for him to answer: 
“How did you get this money?” and “What 
did you do with it?” Some of our present- 
day multimillionaires may have trouble in 
answering these questions. 

A few men to-day fix the price the public 
must pay for nearly all of the necessaries of 
life. Meat packers, grain dealers, sugar 
nabobs, cotton merchants, lumber lords, 
railroad magnates, coal barons, oil kings, 
and a few others fix the price that will 
temporarily satisfy their demands, and the 
public must pay the price or do without. 
Fair competition has been almost entirely 
eliminated by the great corporations, and 
nothing prevents them from plundering the 
public at will. The great struggle of the 
future will be between robber barons who 
fix the price and the long-suffering public 
that must pay the bill. When a highway¬ 
man robs a traveler of $50 we send him to the 
penitentiary, where he belongs; but when a 
robber baron robs the nation of $50,000,000 


More Conditions of Success 187 

he thinks we ought to send him to the United 
States Senate, when in reality he belongs in 
the penitentiary with other thieves. No 
dishonest man is worthy of the respect of 
good people, however much money he con¬ 
trols. The public is coming more and more 
to this view. May the day soon come when 
no thief, regardless of his wealth, shall be 
accepted in good society! 

I do not mean to insinuate that all fortunes 
have been accumulated by dishonest meth¬ 
ods. Many of them have been made by the 
rapid rise in real estate, by the discovery of 
oil, or gold, or by some invention, or by the 
manufacture of important articles, or by 
honest merchandise, or in many other ways. 
I honor such men. They have succeeded and 
are entitled to our highest consideration. 
They are men of honor; they have given 
value received and are entitled to what they 
have. They are to be commended and con¬ 
gratulated. The ability to acquire wealth 
honorably is desirable. It is a great gift. 
It indicates ability of a rare kind and should 
be used for the glory of God in the good of 
the race. 

But the dishonest man in any walk of life 


188 


Fundamentals of Success 


cannot be too strongly condemned, nor his 
methods too cruelly criticized. Light 
weights and short measures have become so 
common in some places that inspectors 
have been appointed to supervise weights 
and measures in order to secure justice 
against such thieves. How sad the revela¬ 
tions some of them have made! Adultera¬ 
tions in foods became so general that pure 
food laws had to be enacted to protect the 
innocent public from being poisoned by such 
frauds. The sick room was being invaded 
and the lives of the sick endangered because 
of adulterated drugs, and the pure drug law 
became necessary. In many ways the frauds 
are trying to cheat the public, but the public 
is demanding honest goods and a fair deal. 
The cry for “a square deal” is more in¬ 
sistent to-day than ever. Men look for 
honest men in business that they may deal 
with such exclusively. Unreliable men are 
now being relegated to the rear as never 
before. The day of the double deal is com¬ 
ing to an end. Business men themselves 
demand reliability. The world wants re¬ 
liable men, men of sterling integrity who can 
be trusted fully and freely. Men of this type 


More Conditions of Success 189 

are wanted in all the walks of life. Men of 
sterling integrity are wanted in the marts of 
trade and also in the practice of law and 
medicine. They are wanted on the editorial 
tripods, in the legislative assemblies, and in 
all public offices. We want men who cannot 
be turned away from the straight way and 
narrow path of duty, men who can¬ 
not be bought, men who cannot be intimi¬ 
dated nor persuaded to do a dishonorable 
deed. 

I have always had a profound admiration 
for the boy who ’could mind a gap. When 
but a small lad on the farm my father some¬ 
times had the small grain threshed in the 
pasture in order to allow the cattle of the 
pasture during the winter free access to the 
stack of straw. The pasture was separated 
from the farm by a barbed wire fence. From 
several posts the staples were drawn, the 
loosened wire was hooked under nails driven 
in the posts at the ground, and a passage 
over the fence was thus effected for the 
wagons going and coming from the farm to 
the thresher. But the cattle in the pasture 
were not wanted in the growing corn. It was 
my duty to mind that gap. While I sat in 


190 Fundamentals of Success 

the July sun with no shade other than that 
afforded by the wire fence, it was only a 
short distance to the most wonderful brook 
and the most beautiful grove my boyhood 
had ever known. What a place to fish and 
wade! But I never forsook that gap. My 
father was not far away! From that time 
until this good day I have always thought 
that a boy who could mind a gap for a full 
summer day with so many attractions so 
near at hand deserves some commendation. 
Usually the boy who can mind a gap will 
grow into a man who can be trusted in every 
position in life. The trustworthy man is in 
demand at all times. 

Unflagging industry is one of the most 
essential elements entering into a successful 
life. No real success can, be achieved with¬ 
out it. Native ability, a noble purpose, 
thorough preparation, and sterling integrity 
must be supplemented by unceasing toil in 
order to reach the highest standards. Long¬ 
fellow has well said: 

“The heights by great men reached and kept, 
Were not attained by sudden flight, 

But they, while their companions slept, 

Were toiling upward in the night.” 


More Conditions of Success 191 

Let no idle youth think for a moment that 
greatness comes without effort. “You can¬ 
not dream yourself into a character,” said 
the great Carlyle; “you must hammer and 
forge yourself one.” If you expect to climb 
the heights, you must learn that patient toil 
is essential. Large capacity and good en¬ 
vironment cannot take the place of unre¬ 
mitting effort. They can only aid. Capaci¬ 
ty for hard work must be inherited or ac¬ 
quired in every successful life. No indolent 
man can reach his highest efficiency. James 
A. Garfield expressed an important truth*. 
“If the power to do hard work is not talent, 
it is the best substitute for it. Things do not 
turn up in this world until somebody turns 
them up. A pound of pluck is worth a ton of 
luck.” The young man who sits, like 
Micawber, waiting for “something to turn 
up” will continue like Micawber to wait in 
vain. Things do not “turn up ” of their own 
accord. The successful man turns them up. 
He does not wait, but works. “No success 
is worthy of the name unless it is won by 
honest industry and brave breasting of the 
waves of fortune,” said Huxley. Turner 
declares: “There is no secret of success but 


192 


Fundamentals of Success 


work.” We sometimes wonder at the great 
proficiency of some artist, or author, or 
business man—we think he must be a 
“genius.” He may be gifted with rare 
capacity, but there is no excellence without 
great labor. “Genius is but the capacity for 
an extraordinary degree of application,” 
said Agassiz. 

When I heard Paderewski the first time I 
wondered at the marvelous skill he dis¬ 
played. The secret of his unparalleled profi¬ 
ciency was found in his tireless practice for 
several hours each day for years. His genius 
was developed by hard work. He was natu¬ 
rally gifted, but to his gift he added the ‘ ‘ toil¬ 
ing upward in the night.” The marvelous 
art of Godowski, Kubelik, Kreisler, and 
many others was acquired by the same sort 
of unremitting toil. 

Hard work is the key to success. It is the 
open sesame to all doors. It solves the dif¬ 
ficult problems, surmounts all obstacles, and 
triumphs in ultimate success. It tunnels the 
mountains, bridges the rivers, subdues the 
wilderness, and makes the desert blossom 
as the rose. Cicero, the perfect orator, over¬ 
came his impediments only by hard work. 


More Conditions of Success 193 

His orations, so polished and beautiful, were 
the result of prodigious labor. Martin 
Luther was an incessant toiler. John Wesley 
worked almost night and day, preaching 
frequently at five o’clock in the morning. 
Gladstone continued his industrious habits 
to the close of his life. Webster’s orations 
were prepared with the greatest care, and 
all the great men of to-day have come to 
their greatness by the road of ceaseless toil. 
The great books and paintings and statuary 
are the result of arduous labor. The great 
fortunes that have been honestly acquired 
have come usually through the same means. 
The great lawyers, doctors, statesmen, farm¬ 
ers, and all successful men climbed the 
heights by hard work. Two boys were col¬ 
lege mates: one was an honest plodder always 
at his work; the other a brilliant idler. The 
latter could solve the problems in higher 
mathematics at sight; he translated his 
Latin in the same way. It was not necessary 
for him to be a diligent student, as learning 
was easy. He acquired the habit of idleness, 
while the other of necessity worked hard in 
order to master his studies properly. Later 
in life the brilliant idler was driving a laun- 
13 


194 Fundamentals of Success 

dry wagon, while the hard-working plodder 
was at the head of a great institution of 
learning. 

It is not a new field or a new opportunity 
that most men need so much as a new zeal 
for the work in hand. Many believe that if 
they had a larger field or greater opportunity 
they would put forth a stronger effort and 
make sure of success. “He that is faithful 
in that which is least is faithful also in 
much.” The man who only halfway tries in 
a small situation will only halfway try in the 
greater place. The trifles should be so well 
done that larger things will be well done 
easily when they come. The best possible 
effort on every occasion is the rule of the 
most successful men. Two preachers on a 
rainy day preached in two churches in a 
small country town. After the services were 
over they met for a social hour. The older 
said to the younger: “How was your service 
to-day?” He answered: “It was a small 
congregation. I didn’t try at all; just made 
a short talk and dismissed the service. ’ ’ The 
first speaker was then asked how he had 
fared. His answer was: “My congregation 
was not large either, but they had come 


More Conditions of Success 195 

through the rain and were entitled to the 
best I had. I preached the very best I 
could.” One was a hopeless failure as a 
pastor and preacher; the other a distinguished 
success. 

Steady toilers are the ones who succeed. 
To keep constantly at the task and never 
tire is the way to accomplish astonishing re¬ 
sults. It may appear that little or no prog¬ 
ress is being made, but constant application 
finally succeeds. Intermittent toilers are 
unreliable. The man who works by “ spells” 
may fail, but the one who keeps steadily 
pursuing his task is sure to succeed. “The 
man who fails is not the man who has no 
gift, no chance, no pull, no encouragement, 
no training,” says Frank Crane; “it is the 
man who quits '’ The successful man never 
quits. When others quit, he begins. He is 
resourceful; if he cannot do it in one way, he 
does it in another. He never ceases until 
his task is done. 

Patient toilers are sure to win. Some¬ 
times an ambitious young man gets im¬ 
patient for promotion. He longs for wider 
fields and greater opportunities. It is a 
natural longing and commendable. But 


196 


Fundamentals of Success 


“ let patience have her perfect work.’’ Great 
oaks are not grown overnight nor great men 
produced in a day. It takes time for making 
a long journey or growing a great man. 
Often • progress is unconsciously made. 
Crossing Corpus Christi Bay one night in a 
small launch, while looking at the stars, we 
seemed to be standing perfectly still, though 
the little engine was going at full speed. 
Though apparently standing still, it re¬ 
quired only a short time to come to the 
landing. So in the journey of life, to keep 
steadily and patiently at the task, though we 
appear to be making little or no progress, 
will finall> bring us to the desired harbor. 
Remember also that when a better place is 
desired the best way to secure it is to fill the 
present place so full that it cannot hold you 
any longer. Some discerning eye will dis¬ 
cover the growth, and promotion will come 
in due time. The truly industrious man 
never watches the clock. He is absorbed in 
his work, and the day is soon gone. The 
social hour filled with pleasure is gone all too 
soon. When a man finds pleasure in his task 
the day is never long. The timeserver waits 
all through the dreary day for its close. 


More Conditions of Success 197 

He waits through the tiresome month 
for its end and his check. The check is es¬ 
sential, ’tis true, but the man who serves 
simply for his check is not on the road to 
success. Fortune never smiles upon the 
timeserver. She visits the patient and 
steady toilers who have joy in their work. 

The successful toiler never shirks. The 
man who fails sees how little he can do for 
the pay he receives. He comes as late as he 
dares, leaves at the first moment allowed, 
and kills all the time he can during the day. 
He has no interest in his employer’s business 
and cares for nothing but his pay. The suc¬ 
cessful man renders the best service pos¬ 
sible, is not afraid to work overtime, and 
makes his employer’s interests his own. 
“He never shirks, never fouls, but hits the 
line hard.” 

A bright young fellow was given a place 
in an office by the side of a clerk of long serv¬ 
ice. He was always prompt, efficient, and 
ready to remain after hours when necessary. 
He rendered assistance to the head of the de¬ 
partment after regular hours and was glad 
of the opportunity. The older employee 
said one day: “Young fellow, you will soon 


198 Fundamentals of Success 

find that in this office you need not do any 
more than is required of you. I’ve been at 
this desk for twenty years and I know.” 
“Very well/’ said the efficient young aspir¬ 
ant, '‘you have tried your way for twenty 
years without promotion; let me try mine for 
a while.” In less than a year the willing and 
capable young man had been promoted, 
while the other continued at the same old 
desk. 

The most efficient service is rendered by 
the one who loves his work. Herein lies a 
great secret. No man can be at his best 
when he has a distasteful task. It is pos¬ 
sible to learn to delight in a work when at 
first you found no special pleasure in it. 
Men as well as children find pleasure in do¬ 
ing something that they can do well. The 
college student finds joy in his Greek if he 
reads it readily. If one knows how to do his 
work in the most expert way, he is sure to 
love the work and find pleasure therein. 
“ Not to do what we like, but to like what we 
must do, makes life blest,” said Goethe. 
Whatever the task, the doer should learn to 
do it well and find pleasure in its per¬ 
formance. 


More Conditions of Success. 199 

Hard work becomes a pleasure when so 
regarded. It can be made to afford positive 
joy. The curse that was uttered, “In the 
sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread,” may 
in this way be transformed into a blessing. 
Happy is the man who loves his work and 
toils in blessed contentment, finding pleasure 
rather than pain in the faithful discharge of 
his duty. It is more blessed to labor than to 
loaf. Happier by far is the honest man who 
walks to his daily work with a song in his 
heart than the idle loafer driven by his 
chauffeur over the hills in search of amuse¬ 
ment for his restless mind. There is joy in 
the consciousness of earning your own way 
through the world. Let no man be afraid of 
work. It is honorable. It is the foundation 
of business, the cause of prosperity, and the 
way that leads to success. It is the creator 
of capital, the constant companion of the 
giants of industry and the leaders in the 
world’s progress, and the best friend for 
aspiring manhood. Learn to delight in hard 
work. Your success is then assured. 


XIV 

COURAGE AND FAITH NECESSARY 

A courageous heart will be found neces¬ 
sary to fight the great battle of life. Fear 
means failure. Courage means success. 
'‘Be strong and of a good courage; be not 
afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the 
Lord thy God is with thee,” was the exhorta¬ 
tion to Joshua when he succeeded Moses in 
command of the Israelites. With fear in his 
heart failure would have been certain. But 
with undaunted courage he went forth to 
conquer. He knew no danger, hesitated at 
no difficulty, and paused before no obstacle. 
His fearless heart assured him of victory and 
urged him on to conquest. Apparently in¬ 
surmountable difficulties were on every side: 
the army of Egypt in the rear, the wilderness 
to the right and the left, and the fordless 
Jordan in front; the fainting and fearful 
army of Israel was on his hands—enough, 
one would think, to make him afraid. But 
Joshua knew no fear. He had been com¬ 
manded from on High to cross over and take 
possession of the “ Promised Land.” He did 
( 200 ) 


Courage and Faith Necessary 201 

not hesitate. He made ready to march, 
marched through a dry Jordan, and took 
possession of the land “flowing with milk and 
honey. ’ ’ Before such imperious courage diffi¬ 
culties dissolved. With such heroism failure 
was impossible. Out of defeat his courage 
brought victory and out of failure success. 

Joshua was not the first, nor the last, to 
prove what courage can do. Before and 
since his day the great generals by courage 
have inspired their armies to win surprising 
victories on the field of battle. In countless 
ways unnumbered millions through courage 
have won splendid victories in the great 
battles of life, while others through fear have 
lost. Fear is the mother of defeat. Fear 
never succeeds. It fails every time. A 
coward on the battle field is of no value. He 
is only food for cannon. He is a positive 
detriment to his own company. His fear 
may prove contagious. He is to be feared 
more than a brave man in the ranks of the 
enemy. He helps demoralize his own com¬ 
panions. A raw recruit was in a company 
that had been ordered to charge the enemy. 
His heart was in his throat, but for a while 
he kept in line. He had never been under 


202 Fundamentals of Success 

fire before. The roar of the cannon was in 
his ears, the smoke of powder in his nostrils; 
shot and shell were whirling through the air. 
A bullet whizzed by his face. He dodged. 
A hole was shot through the crown of his 
hat. That was too much. He threw down 
his gun and, with hat in hand, started a 
hasty retreat. Passing another charging 
company, the captain shouted: “Stop there, 
you coward! Why are you running?” 
Without pausing, he looked back over his 
shoulder and replied: “Runnin’, captain, be¬ 
cause I can’t fly.” Such cowardice is held 
in contempt by brave men everywhere. 

But how we admire the brave young cap¬ 
tain who had fought through the jungles of 
San Juan and who was leading his company 
up the hill. Passing his commanding officer 
he said: “Colonel, I’m sweating blood with 
fear, but I’ll keep my men in line and give 
the enemy the best fight I’ve got.” He fell 
that day in the forefront of the battle, the 
bravest among the brave. The world ad¬ 
mires courage, but has no favor for fear. 
It admires courage not only on the field of 
bloody battle, but everywhere in the great 
conflict of life. 


Courage and Faith Necessary 203 

Life is a great battle. He who wins the 
battle must have courage. The faint heart 
never wins. It always loses. Paul, the great 
apostle to the Gentiles, urged Timothy, his 
son in the gospel, “War a good warfare,” and 
“endure hardness as a good soldier of Jesus 
Christ.” He regarded life as a great conflict 
and exhorted his followers to have the cour¬ 
age to endure the hardness of battle. 

Life is beset with many difficulties. There 
are problems to solve, obstacles to overcome, 
and oppositions to meet. Sometimes the 
way will appear completely blocked. As 
Christian on the King’s Highway saw the 
lions ready to devour him when he ap¬ 
proached, so will every young man meet 
dangers in his pathway. But when Christian 
summoned the courage to proceed he found 
the lions securely chained and passed in 
safety between them. So when dangers be¬ 
set the pathway proceed with courage. The 
way may be opened and the dangers found 
only apparent. 

Your courage will be in constant demand. 
Temptations will meet you on every hand. 
Disappointments will come. Discourage¬ 
ment will wait upon you. Gloom will settle 


204 Fundamentals of Success 

down over your pathway sometimes like a 
sable pall. You may, like Elijah, sit under 
some juniper tree and wish that you might 
die. Such days have come in the life of 
many. They may come in yours. But a 
better day is always ahead. Every cloud has 
its silver lining. Be not dismayed. When 
down in the mouth, think of Jonah. He 
came out all right.” So shall you, if your 
courage never fails. 

You may be an ambitious youth desiring 
to better equip yourself for life by securing 
a college education. Your father cannot fur¬ 
nish you the necessary funds, or it may be 
you have no father and no funds. Tuition 
fees and board must be paid and current ex¬ 
penses met. What can be done? Like a 
young Joshua, you may face difficulties on 
every hand; but if, like Joshua, you face 
them with true courage, they will be over¬ 
come and a way of escape be made. Hun¬ 
dreds of deserving young fellows are in col¬ 
lege to-day earning all or a part of their ex¬ 
penses. I am personally acquainted with 
many men who have made their way through 
college by loans and hard work, and who are 
now in positions of influence and power. 


Courage and Faith Necessary 205 

A majority of the successful men of to-day 
have earned a part of their expenses while in 
college. Your way is no more difficult than 
theirs. They have succeeded; why not you ? 

After your graduation and in the midst 
of the duties of life, grave responsibilities 
may appear. Do not fear. Fear is the ad¬ 
junct of failure. Assume the responsibilities 
with modesty and courage. The con¬ 
sciousness of power gives courage and as¬ 
sures success. The timid and retiring rarely 
reach the positions of leadership. Vain 
egotism is contemptible, but conscious power 
assumes leadership without offense. Cour¬ 
age born of known ability gives assurance 
and commands success. When the timid and 
fearful retreat before difficulties the coura¬ 
geous face them with modest assurance and 
win success. Have no fears of any kind. The 
fearful and faint-hearted are cast into the 
lake of utter failure and are forgotten. 

If you enter the commercial world, you 
may be tempted to adopt the “tricks of the 
trade.’* False weights and measures may be 
shown as the practice in general use. Adul¬ 
terations and misrepresentations may be 
forced upon you, and you may wonder how 


206 Fundamentals of Success 

you can successfully meet them. If you take 
up the practice of any of the professions, you 
may find “short cuts” to the top of the hill. 
You may find where undue advantage may 
be taken of your opponent. If you enter the 
ministry, you may be tempted to “whip the 
devil around the stump,” or wink at gilded 
or popular vice, or to fail in declaring the 
“whole counsel of God.” But your courage 
must never fail. In whatever field you may 
labor you will find difficulties and dangers. 
Your courage must never fail. Whatever 
others may do, you must do right. 

Physical courage in the face of physical 
danger is admirable, but moral courage 
under trying circumstances is more ad¬ 
mirable. It is easier to seize a fallen flag on 
the battle field and in the presence of an ad¬ 
miring multitude and amid the roar of shot 
and shell and the huzzahs of comrades place 
the battle flag on the very breastworks of the 
enemy than to face the same company on a 
moral issue in the midst of jeers. It is easier 
to follow the crowd in the channels of trade 
doing wrong than to break away and stand 
alone in the right. It requires real courage 
to stand alone on a great moral issue. Any 


Courage and Faith Necessary 207 

coward can go with the crowd when there is 
no danger, but it requires a man to stand 
alone on a moral issue in the face of the 
multitude. If you wish to put the highest 
test to a man’s courage, let a moral issue be 
raised with the majority and the financial 
and social prestige arrayed on the wrong 
side. It requires moral heroism to stand 
alone against such a combination. 

How admirable is the man who can stand 
firmly by his convictions and quietly endure 
the unjust criticisms of the unthinking 
crowd, who can stand without flinching when 
the missiles of evil are hurled against him and 
calmly await the day of vindication. Such 
courage commands respect. Daniel dared to 
do right in the face of all his enemies and won 
thereby immortal fame. John the Baptist 
had the courage of his convictions to rebuke 
a Herod. It is true he lost his head, but he 
won the admiration of courageous men 
throughout the civilized world. Martin 
Luther before the Diet of Worms, by his 
sublime courage, achieved the most signifi¬ 
cant moral victory of his age and assured the 
success of the great Reformation. By such 
courage you can win life’s battles. 


208 


Fundamentals of Success 


Faith—faith in yourself, faith in mankind, 
and faith in God—is prerequisite to the 
highest success. No man without such faith 
can hope to reach the highest order of 
living. 

You must believe in yourself, in your 
power to accomplish what you undertake. 
The consciousness of dominant power en¬ 
ables you to grasp the situation with a mas¬ 
ter’s hand and go forward with assurance. 
It dismisses the idea of failure and centers 
the mind on the best method of doing the 
thing in hand. The fear of failure disorgan¬ 
izes the faculties, spreads consternation, and 
disqualifies for the best service. The orator, 
the surgeon, the musician, the soldier, or 
any one with real fear tugging at his heart is 
not prepared for his best service. An orator 
at the outset sometimes requires several 
minutes to “find his voice.” The young 
musician in recitals finds difficulties with the 
first numbers. This results from fear of 
failure. The assurance of success usually 
removes this difficulty, though many public 
men confess “quaking in the knees” at the 
outset of every public performance. Ex¬ 
citement on such occasions is natural and 


Courage and Faith Necessary 209 

stimulates one to his best efforts, but faith 
in one’s ability is necessary to give assurance 
and achieve final success. 

It is bad taste to remind any one of your 
own superior ability, or in any way commend 
yourself by words. Modesty is becoming in 
all, but conceit is offensive and unpardon¬ 
able. You must “ think not of yourself more 
highly than you ought to think, but think 
soberly.” Yet, a man cannot keep from 
knowing it when he is six feet four inches in 
height. While he is conscious of his height, 
he need not continually remind others of it 
by words. People have eyes. They can see. 
So if you are conscious of your ability to do 
what others cannot, say nothing about it, 
but let your deeds commend you rather than 
your words. Self-assurance is essential. It 
gives an atmosphere that cannot be mis¬ 
taken. It inspires confidence in others. I 
saw a task undertaken that seemed impos¬ 
sible. It required the cooperation of a great 
many people. Many of them thought that 
the work could not be done. In the mind of 
the leader there was not the slightest trace 
of a doubt. His assurance became conta¬ 
gious. Soon others saw the possibility of 
14 


210 Fundamentals of Success 

success. They entered heartily into the 
plan. After a while everybody believed it 
could be done, and in due time the work was 
more than accomplished. Had the leader 
doubted, his doubts would have proved con¬ 
tagious, general doubt would have paralyzed 
all effort, and failure would have been the 
result. Doubt breeds failure. Faith inspires 
success. When Wrigley, the famous chew¬ 
ing-gum man, was asked how he made his 
fortune, he said: “Work did it. A man can 
go ahead and do anything so long as he 
doesn’t know he can’t do it.” There is 
wonderful wisdom packed in that single 
sentence. “All things are possible to him 
that believeth.” “This is the victory that 
overcometh the world, even our faith.” 

“ There are thousands to tell you it cannot be done; 
There are thousands to prophesy failure, 

There are thousands to point out to you, one by one. 
The dangers that wait to assail you; 

But just buckle in with a bit of a grin, 

Then take off you coat and go to it; 

Just start in to sing as you tackle the thing 
That cannot be done, and you’ll do it.” 

You must believe not only in yourself, but 
in mankind—not in all mankind, of course, 
but in all trustworthy men. Such confidence 


Courage and Faith Necessary 211 

is essential to satisfactory communications 
in the world of affairs. Without faith in man 
there is no hope of progress, no possibility of 
success. When you lose faith in all men and 
women you lose all prospect of the future and 
cause all to lose faith in you. The one who 
declares that “every man has his price” 
invites a bid on himself. Suspicion begets 
suspicion, while faith begets confidence. 

There are many who are unworthy of con¬ 
fidence. They are not confined to the city 
nor to the country. They are to be found in 
all callings, professions, avocations, and 
trades. They are everywhere. To misplace 
your trust in any such is to invite trouble and 
confusion. Financial ruin has resulted many 
times to good men by confiding in un¬ 
trustworthy associates. To know human 
nature and where to put your confidence is 
essential to the most successful life. Some of 
the great captains of industry appear to have 
an unerring instinct for selecting the trust¬ 
worthy man for promotion and responsi¬ 
bility. 

The work of the world is carried on by 
faith; it is essential to commerce. “We walk 
by faith and not by sight.” We buy and sell 


212 Fundamentals of Success 

by faith. The banks, houses of merchandise, 
the government, diplomacy—everything is 
conducted by faith. By faith the farmer 
plants and reaps. He expects the early and 
latter rain. He toils in the open field in 
cultivation of the growing grain, confidently 
expecting the harvest as his reward. By 
faith the miner works; examining the surface 
of the earth, he finds evidence of coal, oil, 
gas, or some precious metal and spends his 
money by faith, hoping to get returns for his 
expenditures. By faith fortunes are some¬ 
times spent on such ventures. By faith the 
merchant sends out his ships, expecting safe 
returns and liberal profits on his risks. By 
faith the capitalist invests large sums of 
money in a factory, or railroad, or other 
enterprise, hoping for profits. By faith the 
family life and home circle are established. 
The young man believes in his sweetheart 
and confides all to her love. By faith she 
forsakes her father and mother and cleaves to 
the man of her choice, committing her honor, 
her happiness, her life, her all into his keep¬ 
ing. What more beautiful display of faith 
can be found? With loving trust she plights 
her troth and starts in the great conflict of 


Courage and Faith Necessary 213 

life to stand or fall with him. But for faith 
the work of the world would cease and the 
wheels of progress be stopped. When this 
faith is shattered how gloomy is the outlook, 
how desolate is the heart, how vain and 
worthless is all the world! 

“Success is the science of being believed 
in,” says G. Stanley Lee. If you succeed, 
you must inspire the confidence of your fel¬ 
lows. If you succeed in courting, you must 
make your sweetheart believe in you. If you 
want promotion, you must make your 
superiors in office believe in you. If you 
want to sell anything, you must make the 
people believe in you and your article for 
sale. If you want to establish a great house 
of merchandise, you must make the people 
believe in you and your goods. If you want 
to be a great attorney, you must compel the 
confidence of your clients, your jury, and 
your judge. If you want to be a great 
physician, you must command the con¬ 
fidence of your patients. If you want to es¬ 
tablish a great school, you must make your 
patrons believe in you and your institution. 
If you want to hold public office, you must 
make the voters believe in you and your 


214 Fundamentals of Success 

policies. If you want to be a preacher, you 
must make the people believe in you and 
your message. If you want to do anything, 
you must secure the confidence of those with 
whom you deal. Shall I tell you the great 
secret in thus winning such confidence? 
It is well worth knowing. Without it you 
must fail. It is found in the two significant 
words, Be wovthy. This confidence cannot 
be inspired and maintained without genuine 
merit. Frauds are soon discovered and dis¬ 
trusted. True worthiness wears well. The 
great leaders of the world have inspired and 
maintained the confidence of men by never 
betraying a trust and by always proving 
worthy of their confidence. Harlequins and 
humbugs last but a day. Why should they 
vainly try to deceive? 

Faith in God is more essential than faith in 
yourself or your fellow man. It is the foun¬ 
dation of faith in all else. It is the substra¬ 
tum upon which character rests—and our 
civilization is built upon character. Faith 
in God is at the foundation of all. St. Peter 
exhorts: “Add to your faith virtue; and to 
virtue knowledge; and to knowledge temper¬ 
ance; and to temperance patience; and to 


Courage and Faith Necessary 215 

patience godliness; and to godliness brother¬ 
ly kindness; and to brotherly kindness 
charity.” He recognizes that faith in God is 
the true foundation upon which character is 
built. This faith is the immovable rock upon 
which our noblest men have built their great 
characters. It lends stability and strength 
to the whole superstructure. It brings 
comfort and encouragement in the midst of 
sorrows. It inspires and sustains in the days 
of disappointment. Faith in Jesus Christ as 
the Son of God and your personal Saviour is 
the climax of religious joy. Fellowship with 
him sweetens and enriches life as no other 
experience. The example he gave guides our 
footsteps aright. Faith in him and his 
atoning merit brings a peace and joy that 
the world cannot give or take away. Blessed 
is the man who trusteth in him and follows 
his inspiring leadership. 

Without faith in God the whole word is a 
perfect puzzle. The universe is without ex¬ 
planation or cause, life is meaningless and 
without purpose. The darkness of night 
hovers over all, and no ray of light can be 
seen. Without God we sink into cold ma¬ 
terialism. The warmth and joy of life are 


216 Fundamentals of Success 

gone, and the universe is without intelligent 
control. Without him the hope of heaven is 
banished, the glories of immortality fade, 
and the richest treasures of thought are 
taken forever from the human mind. In 
such state there is no inspiration to noble 
deeds. 

But by faith the heroes of old “ subdued 
kingdoms, wrought righteousness, . . . out 
of weakness were made strong, waxed 
valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies 
of the aliens,” and conquered all their foes. 
By faith you may conquer too. 

If you have good native capacity and a 
worthy purpose, if you make careful prepa¬ 
ration for your work, if you show sterling 
integrity and a courageous heart, if you 
exercise faith in yourself, your fellow man, 
and God, and prove industrious, you cannot 
fail. You will meet the conditions of success, 
and success will be yours. 








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216 Fundamentals of Saccess 

gone, and the universe is without intelligent 
control. Without him the hope of heaven is 
banished, the glories of immortality fade, 
and the richest treasures of thought are 
taken forever from the human mind. In 
such state there is no inspiration to noble 
deeds. 

But by faith the heroes of old “ subdued 
kingdoms, wrought righteousness, . . . out 
of weakness were made strong, waxed 
valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies 
of the aliens,” and conquered all their foes. 
By faith you may conquer too. 

If you have good native capacity and a 
worthy purpose, if you make careful prepa¬ 
ration for your work, if you show sterling 
integrity and a courageous heart, if you 
exercise faith in yourself, your fellow man, 
and God, and prove industrious, you cannot 
fail. You will meet the conditions of success, 
and success will be yours. 





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